On Tuesday, Breitbart posted an article reporting that housing starts increased more than 10 percent in February.
The article reports:
New home construction surged in February, as housing starts jumped 11.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.5 million, far surpassing expectations. The increase was led by a strong rebound in single-family homebuilding, a sign that builders are responding to demand despite lingering concerns over mortgage rates and supply constraints.
Single-family starts rose 11.4 percent to an annualized 1.11 million, the fastest pace in a year. Multi-family construction also posted a 10.7 percent increase, though that segment has shown more volatility in recent months. The strength in February’s report follows a period of stagnation in housing construction, particularly in the final years of the previous administration when builders faced high interest rates, rising costs, and regulatory uncertainty.
The article concludes:
The increase in new home construction also stands in contrast to some of the more downbeat economic indicators in recent weeks. While reports on consumer sentiment and retail sales have pointed to some lingering uncertainty, the housing sector’s strength signals that parts of the economy are still expanding.
With single-family home construction picking up pace and builders pushing forward despite higher costs, the February report suggests that the long-stalled housing market may finally be regaining its momentum.
Democrat administrations have attempted to control local zoning since the Obama administration with the goal of eliminating single-family housing. Owning a home is not only part of the American dream, it helps stabilize neighborhoods and create generational wealth.
In 2015, Investor’s Business Daily reported:
Under a sweeping new federal housing mandate, the Obama administration threatens to withhold funding for cities and counties that fail to remove local zoning laws and other potentially “discriminatory barriers” that restrict low-income housing in wealthy neighborhoods.
More than 1,200 municipalities will be impacted by the highly contested rule, which the Housing and Urban Development Department put into effect Wednesday.
The agency seeks to combat discrimination in affluent suburban areas, while also desegregating poor urban areas where it says too many minorities lack access to good schools and jobs.
“A ZIP code should never determine a child’s future,” HUD Secretary Julian Castro said.
The massive 377-page regulation requires local authorities to take “meaningful actions” to diversify neighborhoods. Municipalities that don’t comply risk losing millions in federal grant money. Some could face federal housing-bias probes.
That idea is still part of the Democrat Party playbook, so it should not come as a surprise that the housing market does well under a Republican President. All Americans need to be aware of the fight to federalize zoning and be ready to fight it whenever it is introduced. When the Democrat Party regains power, federalizing zoning will be reintroduced.