The pace of new home construction in theUnited   Statesslipped slightly in November, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, but the rate of housing starts still marked a four-year high.

According to the government’s statistics, November housing starts showed an annual rate of 810,000 homes. That’s down about 3 percent from October but still 21.6 percent higher than last year.

Some of the month-to-month slowdown might be attributed to superstormSandy, which hit the Northeast on Oct 29. According to the Census Bureau figures, housing starts were down about 6 percent in that region in November.

New building permits, a forward-looking indicator, rose by 3.6 percent in November, a sign that the housing-start slowdown might be temporary. Also, the National Association of Home Builders on Dec. 18 revealed that builder sentiment was at its highest level since 2006.