WASHINGTON, May 16 (Reuters) - U.S. single-family homebuilding fell in April as tariffs on imported materials and high mortgage rates remained major obstacles for the housing market.

Single-family housing starts, which account for the bulk of homebuilding, dropped 2.1% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 927,000 units last month, the Commerce Department's Census Bureau said on Friday.

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President Donald Trump's , opens new tab aggressive and erratic tariffs, including duties on lumber and steel, have left builders reeling. The United States and China de-escalated their trade war over the weekend, but uncertainty remains over what happens after the 90-day truce they agreed on. There is also no clarity on the fate of country-specific duties which were delayed until July.

A National Association of Home Builders survey on Thursday showed sentiment among single-family homebuilders plunged to a 1-1/2-year low in May, with 78% of builders reporting "difficulties pricing their homes recently due to uncertainty around material prices."

There is also a glut of unsold new homes, with inventory at levels last seen in late 2007.

Permits for future construction of single-family housing declined 5.1% to a rate of 922,000 units in March. Residential investment, which includes homebuilding, rebounded in 2024 after steep declines in the prior two years caused by a surge in mortgage rates. It grew at a moderate pace in the first quarter of 2025.

https://www.reuters.com/business/us-single-family-housing-starts-building-permits-fell-april-2025-05-16/