Declining interest rates spurred the increase. 

Located in Woodinville’s Wine Village, Vineyard Creek will feature 45 duplex homes ranging in size from 2,000 to 2,500 square feet.

Specifically, single-family homes were built at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 963,000, up 3.2% from 933,000 in August and up 8.6% from 887,000 a year earlier, according to government figures. 

A three-tower Bellevue development originally intended for a massive office complex is being reimagined as a mixed-use development with residential units.

Several cities around the country, including Seattle, are making significant strides in addressing housing shortages with new construction.

Single-family home permits and completions, meanwhile, also rose, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. 

Low inventory and high demand are buoying builder sentiment in the face of several headwinds. 

Woods Partners and ParkProperty Capital broke ground today on Alta North City, a new residential community in the Seattle Shoreline’s North City neighborhood.

Demand for newly built homes has remained strong as high interest rates keep many would-be sellers of existing homes off the market. 

The larger-than-expected increase comes as homebuilder sentiment rose for the sixth month in a row. 

A shortage of existing inventory continues to drive buyers to new construction. 

Single-family permits also posted a gain, indicating even more new homes are headed to today’s supply-constrained housing market. 

Homebuilder optimism was buoyed by continued shortages of new housing inventory, the National Association of Home Builders reported. 

U.S. government data shows builders increased the pace of single-family home construction while slowing the pace of multifamily starts. 

The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index rose for the fourth month in a row in April as the construction industry remained “cautiously optimistic.”     

The supply of new homes for sale ticked lower from February, according to government figures.