Through the first eight months of 2019, construction starts were down 5% compared to the same time period last year, on a year-to-date basis, according to Dodge Data & Analytics. The decline is due to a drop in both residential and non-residential building, the data indicates. Non-building construction, spurred by electric and gas work, was 3% higher than in the first eight months of 2018.
“Heading into 2019, we had expected to see the residential sector pull back from levels reached over the past several years, and that scenario is playing out as expected,” says Richard Branch, chief economist at Dodge Data & Analytics. “Both single and multifamily housing have turned the corner and are now heading downward.”