West Michigan New Home Construction Sees Milestones in 2016
As housing starts soared to a post-recession high during the third quarter of 2016, the Grand Rapids market is expected to be a progressive prospect for the upcoming year.
Earlier this month, Trulia.com ranked Grand Rapids as the fourth top market to watch in 2017. It was the only market in the Midwest to make the list. Other housing markets on Trulia’s Top 10 list include those in Florida, Colorado, Arizona and Texas. These regions show strength in several key areas, such as: strong job growth over the past year, low vacancy rates and high affordability.
“Grand Rapids, Michigan, is a wonderful place to work and build a home for your family,” said John Bitely, president of Sable Homes. “It is an exciting time to be part of the West Michigan culture and experience everything the area has to offer.”
The National Association of Home Builders reports nationwide housing starts surged 25.5 percent in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.32 million units, according to newly released data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Commerce Department. Single-family starts increased 10.7 percent to an annual rate of 869,000 — reaching their highest level since October 2007. Multi-family production also increased, jumping 68.8 percent from the previous month.
In 2016, Sable Homes had another record year of home construction with 120 homes. That is up seven from 2015 and 17 from 2014, according to Bitely.
“Over the past few years, we’ve seen consistent growth in home construction development in West Michigan and we believe our home sales will continue to trend upward throughout 2017,” Bitely said.
According to a story in USA Today, building permits — an indicator of future starts — rose to an annual rate of 1.23 million in 2016, more than the 1.19 million economists expected.
Barclays economist Rob Martin told clients the data reaffirms their view that steady improvement in the housing market is likely to continue over the next two years, USA Today reported.
Nationwide, housing starts are projected to rise from 1.16 million units in 2016 to 1.25 million in 2017 and to 1.33 million in 2018. This is one of several factors for Michigan’s continued job growth over the next two years, according to a statewide economic forecast released in November.
State economic experts foresee an uptick of 41,600 jobs in 2017 and nearly 50,000 in 2018, according to MLive.com. That growth would take Michigan to the job levels of 2003, according to the report. Most job gains are expected to come from residential building construction, professional and business services, leisure and hospitality and trade-transportation-utilities.