Number of private housing units started in the U.S. 2000-2018

There were approximately 1.24 million new privately-owned housing units starts in the United States in 2018. The lowest point for housing starts over the past decade was in 2009, just after the 2007-2008 global financial crisis. Since 2010, the number of housing units started has been on the increase and the housing market has rebounded.

The impact of the global recession

The same trend can be seen in home sales over the past two decades. The volume of sales began to drop in 2005 and continued until 2010, after which home sales began to increase again. This dip in sales between 2005 and 2010 suggests that supply was outstripping demand, which led to decreased activity in the residential construction sector.

Impact of recession on home buyers

The financial crisis led to increased unemployment and pay cuts in most sectors, which meant that potential home buyers had less money to spend. The median income of home buyers in the U.S. fluctuated alongside the home sales and starts over the past decade.