Builders in U.S. Probably Started Work on Fewer Homes in October

Builders probably began work on fewer homes in October, a sign housing will remain a laggard in the third year of the U.S. recovery, economists said before a report today.

Starts fell 7.3 percent to a 610,000 annual rate in October, according to the median estimate of 82 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. Manufacturing in the Philadelphia area expanded for a second month, other data may show.