John Varano

Housing starts refer to the number of new homes that broke ground during the month. The U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development track both housing starts and building permits on a monthly basis in order to gauge the health of the new home market. But the number of new homes being built doesn't just affect potential buyers looking for a newly built home. It's also significant because, as new inventory is added, upward pressure on home prices will begin to ease. In other words, the more new homes being built in any particular market, the more likely that market is to see moderating home prices. And according to the most recent data, new home construction spiked last month. In fact, November saw a 10.5 percent rise in overall housing starts and a 7.6 percent increase in the number of single-family homes being built. The gains indicate that builders expect sales to continue to improve in the coming year and are ramping up construction in order to meet demand. Single-family home construction is now at its highest level in nearly eight years.