Have we Finally Hit Bottom???

At first glance the most recent report for housing starts natioanlly (up 8.2% from March) and building permits (up 4.9% from March) suggests that maybe the housing market has found a bottom. However, a closer look suggests otherwise. Most of this gain was attributed to construction of apartment buildings, not single-family homes, which were actually down 1.7% from March.

The Midwest though showed the most strength as housing starts overall were up a staggering 24.4% from March and even saw an increase of 5% in housing starts for single-family homes.

This report suggests that developers and home builders have shifted their focus from single-family homes to multi-unit buildings, taking advantage of the number of home owners that have recently lost their homes to foreclosure and will need to rent.