The rate of home construction in the United States has reached numbers not seen in more than a dozen years, and CNBC’s Jim Cramer thinks it’s an indication that the market has fully recovered.

“I don’t know a soul who noted that it was good news because housing punches above its weight. The strength will benefit not just the homebuilders and the banks, but also the retailers ... [and] the housing-related service economy,” the “Mad Money” host said. “It’s not a sign that we’re headed for another recession, for heaven’s sake. It’s a sign that we’re finally, finally, finally recovered from the last one.”

Housing starts and permits for future construction in November rose to more than a 12-year high, according to the Commerce Department. The figure came in at 1.365 million units, which was above the 1.345 million units that economists had predicted for the month. Building permits came in at 1.482 million units, its highest level since May 2007.

During the nearly 13-month period, Cramer noted, the U.S. population grew by about 28 million to 329 million people.

″[You’d] expect more homebuilding, but the housing permit numbers are merely back to where they were” in 2007,” he said, “after a prolonged period of relatively little new building. I mean, that’s pathetic considering our population growth.”