Domestic housing starts totaled 83,399 units in February, marking a drop of 2.8 percent on a year-on-year basis and a fourth consecutive month of decline, the government said Monday.
The fall is attributable to weakness in starts involving owner-occupied housing and ready-made homes for sale.
But starts involving homes for rent increased, according to the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Ministry.
Starts involving owner-occupied houses fell 1.8 percent in February from a year earlier to 25,936 units, marking a ninth straight month of decline.
Starts involving housing for sale fell 13.7 percent to 25,264 units, down for the fourth consecutive month. This total includes 15,736 condominiums, down 22.9 percent and marking a fourth straight month of decline.
Meanwhile, starts involving homes for rent rose 6 percent to 31,157 units, up for a second straight month.
Housing starts increased 1.8 percent in the Tokyo metropolitan area.
They decreased 8.2 percent in the Chubu region, centering on Nagoya, and 9.2 percent in the Kinki region, including Osaka and Kyoto.
Starts in other regions fell 1.7 percent.