Single Family Housing Starts Hit 17-Year Low

"U.S. home builders may be cutting back sharply on the number of new homes built, but it may not be fast enough for a housing market moving even more quickly in reverse. Single-family housing starts fell 2.9 percent to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 641,000 in July, the lowest level since January 1991; but completions remained well above starts, at a rate of 791,000, according to data released Tuesday morning by the Commerce Department."