Construction lending posted the largest gain of its yearlong recovery in the second quarter, signaling that the real-estate industry’s rebound is gaining steam, albeit slowly.
Figures released Thursday by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. show that outstanding construction loans for both residential and commercial projects increased to $223.2 billion in the second quarter, up 4% from the first. The gain is the sector’s largest since it began rising from its nadir of $201.5 billion in the first quarter of 2013.
The trajectory has been similar for lending for construction of one- to four-family homes. Home-construction lending increased to $48.2 billion in the second quarter, up 5.4% from the first quarter, according to the FDIC.
That, too, is the largest gain for home construction since the sector started rebounding from its low point of $40.7 billion of outstanding loans in last year’s first quarter.
