2025.12.2505:13:12UTC+00Japan Housing Starts Unexpectedly Drop

In November 2025, Japan's housing starts experienced a significant decline, dropping by 8.5% compared to the same month the previous year. This downturn was contrary to market expectations, which had predicted a modest increase of 0.4%. The figures also reversed the 3.2% rise noted in October. This decline marks the seventh contraction within the year, indicating a widespread downturn across various housing categories. Specifically, construction of owned homes fell by 9.5%, compared to an 8.2% drop in October. Similarly, the segment of rented units showed a decrease of 5.5%, reversing from a 4.2% increase. The number of built-for-sale homes plummeted by 11.3%, shifting from a substantial 14.8% gain. Meanwhile, prefabricated housing saw a 4.1% reduction, contrasting with a previous rise of 9.2%, and two-by-four homes decreased by 2.7%, slightly better than the previous month's decline of 3.8%.