Housing starts rose 4.6% in California in March.

Bank of America reported that housing starts increased to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 231,700 units. In its monthly California housing starts report, the bank said single-family starts rose 3% above the February rate to 114,200 units, while multifamily starts increased 6.3% to 117,500 units. In the same report, B of A said the sale of existing houses in the state declined for the third straight month. Economists Michael Smith-Heimer and Michael Salkin estimated that, despite the decline in sales, the median price of a California house rose in March for the third straight month--to $113,900.