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REPEAT:MNI DATA ANALYSIS:US Housing Starts Fall In Sept>

--Repeating File Initially Sent at 8:30 a.m. ET
--September Building Permits Down 4.5% To 1.215 Mln SAAR
By Kevin Kastner, Sara Haire and Holly Stokes
     WASHINGTON (MNI) - The pace of housing starts fell by 4.7% to a 
1.127 million seasonally adjusted annual rate in September, below 
expectations for a 1.170 million pace following mixed revisions to the 
previous two months, data reported by the Commerce Department Wednesday 
morning showed. 
     Housing starts fell 9.3% in the South region, reflecting some 
hurricane impact from Harvey and Irma, though Commerce did not 
specifically address the impacts on the September data. Housing starts 
should turn upward in the coming months as homes in the impacted regions 
will need to be rebuilt. Commerce said previously that total rebuilds 
will count toward permits and starts, but that repairs of homes would 
not. 
     Housing starts of single-family homes fell by 4.6% in September 
after a 3.3% rise in the previous month. Starts of multi-family homes 
fell 5.1% after an 8.7% August decrease, based on an MNI calculation. 
     The pace of unadjusted starts stand 6.6% above its year ago level, 
a sign that home building has improved despite the recent noise. The 
NAHB index for October rose sharply when it was reported on Tuesday 
after a September dip that was prompted by concerns about supply and 
labor shortages. 
     Building permits fell 4.5% in the month, but homes permitted but 
not started rose 1.4%, so starts could see a rebound of activity in 
October if conditions are right. Single-family permits were up 2.4% 
while multi-family permits fell 16.1%. 
     Given the only modest decline in September starts and the mixed 
revisions to the previous months, the third quarter average for starts 
was roughly unchanged from the second quarter average, while permits 
were up modestly. 
     ** MNI Washington Bureau (202) 371-2121 ** 

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