Multifamily starts plummeted in August on a monthly and annual basis, according to the latest residential construction report from the US Census Bureau, released Thursday. In August, the seasonally adjusted rate of starts for buildings with five units or more was 344,000, down 15.5% from a year earlier and down 22.5% from July, the report said. Total privately owned housing starts stood at a seasonally adjusted rate of 1.28 million, 1.2% less than in the same period last year and 2.6% less than in July. The single-family segment had a stronger performance in August, a reversal of the previous monthtrend…