US housing starts slowed to their weakest pace in six years as multifamily projects plunged, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. May starts fell 15.4% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 1.18 mln, below expectations. The decline was driven by a 40.2% drop in multifamily starts; single-family starts slipped 1.9% to an 882k SAAR. Builders remain cautious amid weak demand and are working through new-home inventories; many developers are cutting prices, subsidizing buyers’ mortgage rate

US housing starts slowed to their weakest pace in six years as multifamily projects plunged, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. May starts fell 15.4% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 1.18 mln, below expectations. The decline was driven by a 40.2% drop in multifamily starts; single-family starts slipped 1.9% to an 882k SAAR. Builders remain cautious amid weak demand and are working through new-home inventories; many developers are cutting prices, subsidizing buyers’ mortgage rates and reducing speculative starts (homes begun before sales contracts). Building permits, a forward indicator of construction, fell 0.7% in May to a 1.41 mln SAAR.