Single family housing starts rose 2.8 pct to an annual rate of 1.340 mln units in January, after rising 5.8 pct the previous month, the Commerce Department reported.
Starts of multiple family units rose 17.8 pct to 311,000 units after falling 20.2 pct the previous month.
Starts rose in the Mideast and South, but fell in the Northeast and West, the Commerce Department said.
In the Midwest, starts rose 44.5 pct to 367,000 units, following a 22.1 pct fall in December.
Starts in the South, the country's largest region, rose 4.9 pct to 743,000 units, compared with a rise of 5.7 pct in December. In the West, starts fell 7.0 pct to 415,000 units following a gain of 5.7 pct the month before.
In the Northeast, starts fell 21.3 pct to 126,000 units, after falling 9.6 pct the month before.