June Housing starts retreat in L.A., Ventura counties

Builders pulled fewer building permits in L.A. and Ventura counties in June, in part because of a sharp drop in volatile apartment unit permits following a surge of new multifamily projects in May. But despite the drop, housing starts for the first six months of the year are up a robust 41 percent in L.A. County, according to data compiled by the Construction Industry Research Board and released today by the L.A./Ventura Chapter of the BIA of Southern California.

There were 178 single-family permits pulled in L.A. County along with permits for 363 multifamily units. That brought the year-to-date total to 5,042, a 41.7 percent increase compared to the first six months of 2010. In Ventura County, just 10 single-family and 43 multifamily permits were issued in June. Twenty permits were issued in both Oxnard and Santa Paula. For the year, production countywide is down 25 percent compared to 2010.

Chapter CEO Holly Schroeder said that even with competition from foreclosed homes there is still a demand for new homes that are priced right.

Homes being built this year are greener than ever and designed for 21^st century lifestyles. But fees charged by local cities, counties and school districts that average $50,000 or more per home make it extremely difficult to make projects pencil out in today’s market. We continue to ask local governments to work with our members to reduce and defer fees to help us build more and help get the state’s economy moving again.

You can read the full BIA press release here, and review data for the most active jurisdictions in the two counties here.