FILE - This Sept. 24, 2020 file photo shows a new home under construction in Houston. The number of newly issued permits to build fresh housing rose 6.2% in November on a seasonally adjusted basis. Housing starts rose 1.2%, and are up 12.8% higher than a year ago, the Commerce Department reported Thursday, Dec. 17, to an annualized rate of 1.547 million. .(AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)