Construction on new US homes soared in November to hit the fastest pace since early 2008, signaling that the housing market’s recovery is shaking off rising mortgage rates.
Housing starts leaped 22.7 percent in November to reach a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.09 million, with surges for single-family homes and apartments, according to the Department of Commerce.
Details of Wednesday’s home-construction report show that starts for single-family homes rose 20.8% in November to a rate of 727,000, the highest rate since March 2008. Starts in buildings with at least five units rose 26 percent to a rate of 354,000.
Economists say builders and buyers are becoming accustomed to the new price environment, and, as long as job growth continues at a healthy pace, the housing market’s rebound will also continue.
Indeed, a report earlier this week about home builders signaled that their confidence rose in December to the highest level in four months, led by views on current sales of single-family homes. The National Association of Home Builders is looking for a “gradual improvement” in the recovery in 2014.
This article originally appeared on MarketWatch.