America is building again – a great reason for credit unions to start promoting construction loans.

In April, total U.S. housing starts rose 6.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of nearly 1.17 million, above the revised March estimate of 1.07 million, according to a joint announcement from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Single-family housing starts increased 3.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 778,000 units, and multifamily starts (usually apartment buildings) rose 13.9% to 394,000 units. This renewed demand gives credit unions the confidence to extend financing to more borrowers – something they have been hesitant to do since the housing and commercial construction meltdown before the Great Recession.