Census: Residential Construction Rises To $554.8 Billion In January

Spending on residential construction in the United States increased 2.1 percent in January to $554.8 billion, helping drive overall construction levels to record levels, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Total construction spending in January was estimated to be $1.37 trillion, up 1.8 percent above December estimates – and 8.6 percent above the January 2019 estimate of $1.28 trillion.

Additional highlights from the report include:

  • Spending on private construction was estimated at $1.02 trillion, 1.5 percent above the month before.
  • Non-residential construction came in at an estimated $468 billion in January, which was 0.8 percent above the December number.

The residential construction spending should begin to help fill a dearth of inventory of homes on the market, driven by a relatively strong economy and low interest rates – and further buoy historically high builder confidence in the housing market.

Read the full Census report here.