Housing starts fell for a fifth month in November, the land ministry said Thursday, in an indication that stricter rules for obtaining building permits may remain a drag on economic growth in the first quarter of 2008.

Ground broken on new homes and condominiums fell 27 percent from a year earlier after falling 35 percent in October, the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Ministry said.

The annual total for 2007 seems certain to slip below the 1.1 million mark for the first time in 40 years with the figure for January through November amounting to 973,527 units, down 17.7 percent on the year.