Total US construction starts fell 1.5 percent in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.33 trillion dollars, Dodge Construction Network reported, a second straight monthly decline after a sharp 24.8 percent pullback in August caused by a megaproject slowdown. Nonresidential starts fell 6.3 percent, driven by an 18.4 percent drop in commercial construction, with hotel groundbreakings down 46.3 percent after a strong August and manufacturing starts down 21 percent.
Institutional and nonbuilding work cushioned the fall. Institutional starts climbed 16.3 percent, led by education projects up 38.4 percent, and highway and bridge groundbreakings improved 20.8 percent, while utility projects slipped 4.1 percent. Residential starts eased 0.3 percent. Sarah Martin, Dodge’s director of economic research, said institutional and nonbuilding gains provided a counterweight to weaker commercial and single family starts.
The year to date picture is the opposite of the monthly one: total starts are up 14.3 percent through the first nine months of 2026 against the same period last year, with nonresidential up 23.7 percent and nonbuilding up 18.4 percent, while residential is down 1.7 percent.
The largest projects to break ground in September show where the capital still is: the 4.6 billion dollar South Valley data centre in Silver Springs, Nevada, the 4.3 billion dollar Beacon Point data centre in Robstown, Texas and the 2 billion dollar Vantage data centre campus in Fredericksburg, Virginia, followed by two large solar projects in Texas and Arkansas. Commercial starts fell because fewer such megaprojects started in the month, not because the pipeline emptied.