New Home Starts Fall by Most in 20 Years

Builders began new single-family homes at an annual rate of 441,000 last month, the department said, 16.9 percent below October's figure of 531,000. That is the steepest drop in single-family home starts since January 1991.

In this Sept. 17, 2008 file photo, a worker paves a sidewalk during construction of new home in Palo...

In this Sept. 17, 2008 file photo, a worker paves a sidewalk during construction of new home in Palo Alto, Calif. The government said Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2008, the construction of new homes plummeted in November by the largest amount in a quarter-century as builders slashed production in the face of a recessionary economy. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, File)

(AP)
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Tighter lending standards, rising defaults and fear about the housing market's future have sidelined buyers, an absence felt acutely by homebuilders such as D.R. Horton Inc., Pulte Homes Inc. and Centex Corp.

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