Japan's housing starts fell by 2.5% year-on-year in December 2024, accelerating from a 1.8% decline the previous month but outperforming market expectations of a 3.9% drop.
Japan's housing starts decline in December
This marked the eighth consecutive month of contraction in the housing sector. The drop was primarily driven by a significant decline in new dwellings built for sale, which fell by 14.7%, a sharper decline compared to the 7.3% drop in November. In contrast, new homes built for owner-occupation saw a slower growth rate of 4.6%, down from 11.1% in the previous month. On a more positive note, some housing categories showed improvement. Housing starts for rented properties rebounded by 2.1%, compared to a 5.5% contraction in November.
Issued housing surges 44.8% in December
Issued housing surged by 44.8%, starkly contrasting the 31.9% drop recorded the previous month. Similarly, prefabricated homes saw a modest increase of 2.1%, up from an 8.0% decline in November, while two-by-four homes also experienced slight growth at 0.1%, reversing a drop of 1.03% in the prior month.
