Buildfax: Remodeling activity down 4 percent since last year

According to Buildfax, remodeling activity during August 2012 was down 4 percent from August 2011 in the U.S. West region. Data is based on counts of remodels authorized by building permits in the U.S.

According to the press release:

Regional Residential Remodeling
Seasonally-adjusted annual rates of remodeling across the country in August 2012 are estimated as follows: Northeast, 895,000 (down 4% from July and up 20% from August 2011); South, 1,302,000 (down 3% from July and up 21% from August 2011); Midwest, 588,000 (up 5% from June and down 7% from August 2011); West, 832,000 (up 3% from July and down 4% from August 2011).

It is likely that this is the first time in 24 months or so that remodeling activity has gone down in the West when measured year-over-year. Since 2010, the index has generally shown year-over-year increases, with only the northeast and midwest showing occasional declines.