New-home starts fall in Lee County

The pace of new-home starts in subdivisions in Lee County fell to 116 in the second quarter of 2009 — the slowest in more than a decade, according to statistics released today by housing data company MetroStudy.

There were 139 starts in the first quarter, the release states.

Meanwhile, the level of move-ins in subdivisions fell from 626 in the first quarter to 219 in the second. That was also the slowest pace in more than a decade.

Even with the falling numbers for move-ins, however, the level of finished vacant inventory fell from 351 to 244 units.

That means that there was a 2.7-month supply of finished homes in the second quarter, down from three months in the first quarter.

In Collier County, quarterly starts rose to 114 in the second quarter from 92 in the first. Move-ins declined from 170 to 138 and the inventory of finished vacant housing fell from 490 to 461 units, a 7.8-month supply — a record high, according to MetroStudy.