Single-Family Permits End 2024 with Strong Momentum

Over 2024, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 981,834. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is an increase of 8.0% over the 2023 level of 909,227.

Year-to-date ending in December, single-family permits were up in all four regions. The range of permit increases spanned 11.1% in the Midwest to 6.2% in the South. The West was up by 10.9% and the Northeast was up by 9.3% in single-family permits during this time. For multifamily permits, three out of the four regions posted declines. The Northeast, driven by New York City’s MSA, was the only region to post an increase and was up by 38.5%. Meanwhile, the West posted a decline of 26.9%, the South declined by 19.5%, and the Midwest declined by 1.1%.

Between December 2024 YTD and December 2023 YTD, 45 states posted an increase in single-family permits. The range of increases spanned 33.8% in Montana to 0.1% in South Dakota. The remining five states and the District of Columbia reported declines in single-family permits. The ten states issuing the highest number of single-family permits combined accounted for 63.1% of the total single-family permits issued. Texas, the state with the highest number of single-family permits, issued 158,544 permits over 2024, which is an increase of 9.3% compared to the same period last year. The second highest state, Florida, was down by 0.9%, while the third highest, North Carolina, posted an increase of 6.7%.

For 2024, the total number of multifamily permits issued nationwide reached 489,533. This is 12.8% below the 2023 level of 561,369.

Between December 2024 YTD and December 2023 YTD, 22 states recorded growth in multifamily permits, while 28 states and the District of Columbia recorded a decline. New York (+128.7%) led the way with a sharp rise in multifamily permits from 15,293 to 34,982, while Idaho had the biggest decline of 53.0% from 5,891 to 2,771. The ten states issuing the highest number of multifamily permits combined accounted for 62.4% of the multifamily permits issued. Over 2024, Texas, the state with the highest number of multifamily permits issued, experienced a decline of 18.6%. Florida, the second-highest state in multifamily permits, saw a decline of 27.5%. California, the third largest multifamily issuing state, decreased by 26.2%.

At the local level, below are the top ten metro areas that issued the highest number of single-family permits.

For multifamily permits, below are the top ten local areas that issued the highest number of permits.