Single-Family Permits Hold Steady in April

Economics
Published

Over the first four months of 2024, the total number of single-family permits issued year to date (YTD) nationwide reached 336,124. This is an increase of 25.3% on a year-over-year basis over the April 2023 level of 268,205.

Single-family permits were up in all four regions YTD in April. The range of permit increase spanned 36.4% in the West to 12.6% in the Northeast. The Midwest was up by 27.2%, and the South was up by 22.7% in single-family permits during this time.

For multifamily permits, three out of the four regions posted declines. The Northeast — the only region to post an increase — was up by 51.2%, while the West posted a decline of 36.4%, the South declined by 27.9%, and the Midwest declined by 11.6%.

At the local level, below are the top 10 metro areas that issued the highest number of single-family permits.

Top 10 Largest Single-Family Markets April 2024 - # of Units YTD, NSA YTD % Change
(Compared to April 2023)
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 18,828 22%
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 16,404 29%
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 11,056 68%
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 9,398 27%
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC 6,746 9%
Austin-Round Rock, TX 6,322 31%
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL 5,369 27%
Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, TN 4,873 9%
Jacksonville, FL 4,519 29%
Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL 4,488 -16%

For multifamily permits, below are the top 10 local areas that issued the highest number of permits.

Top 10 Largest Multifamily Markets April 2024 - # of Units YTD, NSA YTD % Change
(Compared to April 2023)
New York-Newark-Jersey City-NY-NJ-PA 18,811 85%
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 9,161 16%
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 6,003 -17%
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 5,237 -10%
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL 4,244 -36%
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 4,225 -45%
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 4,134 -24%
Austin-Round Rock, TX 4,128 -32%
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA 3,875 3%
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria-DC-VA-MD-WV 3,766 8%

Danushka Nanayakkara-Skillington, NAHB’s assistant vice president for forecasting and analysis, provides more state-by-state analysis in this Eye on Housing post.

Subscribe to NAHBNow

Log in or create account to subscribe to notifications of new posts.

Log in to subscribe

Latest from NAHBNow

Economics | Remodeling

Jan 15, 2026

Remodeling Market Sentiment Strengthens in Fourth Quarter of 2025

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) released its NAHB/Westlake Royal Remodeling Market Index (RMI) for the fourth quarter, posting a reading of 64, up four points compared to the previous quarter.

Sustainability and Green Building | Education

Jan 14, 2026

Upcoming NAHB Webinar Will Highlight Updates to NGBS

A new edition of the National Green Building Standard (NGBS) will be coming out soon. NAHB is hosting a webinar on Wednesday, Jan. 28, at 2 p.m. EST for members to learn more about the update.

View all

Latest Economic News

Economics

Jan 15, 2026

Remodeling Market Sentiment Strengthens in Fourth Quarter of 2025

In the third quarter of 2025, the NAHB/Westlake Royal Remodeling Market Index (RMI) posted a reading of 64, increasing four points compared to the previous quarter.

Economics

Jan 15, 2026

Existing Home Sales Climb to Near 3-Year High in December

Existing home sales rose in December to the fastest pace in nearly three years, but annual sales for 2025 remained at a 30-year low as elevated home prices and mortgage rates kept buyers on the sidelines, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

Economics

Jan 14, 2026

Building Material Price Growth Remains Elevated in November

Residential building material prices continued to experience elevated growth, according to the latest Producer Price Index release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Price growth has been above 3.0% since June this year, despite continued weakness in the new residential construction market.