West Left out of Housing Surge-Except Colorado

West left out of housing surge — except Colo.
By Martin CrutsingerThe Associated Press



WASHINGTON — Housing construction posted a surprisingly large increase in February, bolstered by strength in all parts of the country except the West.
While the surge in construction was far better than the continued decline economists had expected, experts viewed the rebound as a temporary gain given all the problems the housing industry still faces.
The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that construction of new homes and apartments jumped 22.2 percent in February compared with January, pushing total activity to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 583,000 units.
Roger Reinhardt, executive vice president of the Home Builders Association of Metro Denver, was more optimistic. He said the national increase may signal that the market is at the bottom.
"Builders haven't just built for the sake of building," he said. "They really have built to meet the market. If we're up 22 percent in entry-level homes, that's an industry getting ready to meet the market."
And that's likely a market targeting first-time homebuyers who can take advantage of an $8,000 tax credit included in President Barack Obama's housing-rescue plan.
In Denver, there's about a 2.7-month inventory of new homes based on the current sales rate, but the inventory of homes priced at more than $600,000, particularly in Doug las County, is higher.
Reinhardt also said Colorado can't be lumped in with other Western states that reported a decline.
"We're not overbuilt like some of the other markets," he said. "We have managed our building cycles quite well here."
Jim Riley, president of Castle Rock Development, said sales at the Meadows in Castle Rock are up 58 percent over November and December.
"We are definitely down from a year ago, but we're hoping the trend is continuing up," he said. "We have seen our traffic numbers pick up."
Denver Post staff writer Margaret Jackson contributed to this report