Boston’s housing inventory issues likely won’t be resolved any time soon, as housing construction starts fell dramatically in March, according to the latest figures released by Dodge Data & Analytics.
A look at March’s home starts shows a 56 percent dip when compared to March 2016, with $277 million being spent on new construction compared to $632 million the year prior. Nonresidential building, as well as total building, also dropped 56 percent in March, according to Dodge.
Year-to-date numbers aren’t any rosier. There was a 63 percent drop off in housing construction spending through March of 2017. Nonresidential spending fared a bit better with a 14 percent decline year-over-year, but total building spending for the first quarter was down 40 percent.
The numbers indicate the continuing of a worrisome trend for the area. February’s construction starts were even worse, with a 71 percent drop from February 2016 and a 67 percent drop year-over-year.
The lag in spending won’t help the extreme housing shortage in Boston. This March had 12.5 percent fewer homes for sale than the previous March, marking the 22nd consecutive month of year-over-year inventory declines. The low inventory has caused available housing to skyrocket in price. The median home price for all housing types in March was $236,400, up 6.8 percent from March 2016. It’s the 61st consecutive month of year-over-year gains.
| 2017 | 2016 | Percent change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Residential (March) | $277,744,000 | $632,300,000 | -56 |
| Nonresidential (March) | $293,125,000 | $666,572,000 | -56 |
| Total building | $570,869,000 | $1,298,872,000 | -56 |
| Year-to-date | |||
| Residential | $571,816,000 | $1,555,017,000 | -63 |
| Nonresidential | $1,215,804,000 | $1,421,023,000 | -14 |
| Total building | $1,787,620,000 | $2,976,040,000 | -40 |