While U.S housing starts are showing a faster pace of increase nationwide, residential construction in Chicago are showing a more modest recovery. A recent report by the U.S Department of Commerce shows that new residential construction rose in the month of October. The report states that privately-owned housing starts were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 894,000 this month. This marks a 3.6 percent increase from last month and 41.9 percent increase from October of last year.

In Chicago, the housing starts growth remains steady, but continues to show signs of improvement. Metro Study Report, a housing market consulting firm, said home construction rates in the city grew over 25 percent compared to last year.

John Wozniak is the president of the Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago. He said the increase is promising, but home builders in the city still have a long way to go. “We had an increase this year in 2012 over 2011.�? said Wozniak. “The fact that we are up this year is a good sign, but it’s certainly nowhere close to were we were four or five years ago.�?

According to Wozniak, in the last few years, construction went down to less than 3,000 homes per year. Residential construction peaked six years ago when home building in Chicago was at 36,000 homes annually. Housing experts say that employment continues to be a key factor in the housing recovery. 

Source:
WBEZ
US Department of Commerce
Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago