Housing Starts Unexpectedly Rise to Five-Month High

Builders in the U.S. unexpectedly began work on more homes in September, a sign the real estate market was stabilizing at depressed levels heading into the recent upheaval in the foreclosure crisis.

Housing starts rose to a 610,000 annual rate, the most since April and up 0.3 percent from a revised 608,000 rate in August that was higher than previously estimated, Commerce Department figures showed today in Washington. Building permits dropped to the lowest level in more than a year as a plunge in the volatile multifamily area overshadowed a gain in single-family applications.