WASHINGTON — Permits for single-family homes fell 4% in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 845,000, the Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development reported Tuesday.
The revised August rate was 880,000. Across all types of housing, permits edged down 0.2% to an annual pace of 1.4 million, 3% below September 2025.
Builders also started fewer homes, according to the report’s estimates, though the survey could not establish that those changes were statistically different from zero.
Single-family starts were estimated at an annual rate of 859,000, down 4.6% from August’s revised 900,000. Total starts were estimated at 1.221 million, a 5.2% monthly decrease and 7.4% below a year earlier.
The report gives a margin of error of 10 percentage points for the monthly change in single-family starts and 11.8 points for total starts. Both ranges include the possibility of an increase.
Completed homes reached an estimated annual rate of 1.192 million, 14% below September 2025. The estimated monthly increase of 2.2% was not statistically significant.
The agencies cautioned against drawing a trend from one month’s figures. Their explanatory notes say establishing an underlying trend can take three months for permits and six months for starts or completions.
The next report, covering October, is scheduled for Nov. 18.
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