Home Building Geography Index (HBGI)

The Home Building Geography Index (HBGI) is a quarterly measurement of building conditions across the country and uses county-level information about single-family and multifamily permits to gauge housing construction growth in various submarkets. The third quarter of 2023 rollout of the HBGI focuses on the population density-based delineation of home building that has been the mainstay of the HBGI while also including analysis based on county personal income per capita estimates.

The latest findings illustrate that labor shortages, supply shortages and higher mortgage rates continue to drag down the housing market. In third quarter of 2023:

• Single-family home building experienced widespread declines, as the sector posted negative growth rates in all submarkets for the third straight quarter.
• Single-family construction is showing signs of picking up heading into the end of the year despite several headwinds, particularly with higher interest rates.
• Multifamily construction showed strength in two particular submarkets: Large Metro – Outlying Counties and Non-Metro/Micro Counties posted positive growth rates for the eight and eleventh consecutive quarters, respectively.

Download the data file of the full HBGI findings here.

Regional Building Growth Conditions

NAHB classified all counties in the U.S. as one of seven regional categories based on population density and regional location. For each area, NAHB tracked single-family and multifamily growth rates (not seasonally adjusted) and market shares.