Graph and download economic data for New Private Housing Units Authorized by Building Permits for California (CABPPRIVSA) from Jan 1988 to Aug 2025 about permits, buildings, new, CA, private, housing, and USA.

VITAL SIGNS INDICATOR

Housing Production (LU4)

FULL MEASURE NAME

Produced housing units by unit type

LAST UPDATED

February 2023

DESCRIPTION

Housing production is measured in terms of the number of units that local jurisdictions produces throughout a given year. The annual production count captures housing units added by new construction and annexations, subtracts demolitions and destruction from natural disasters, and adjusts for units lost or gained by conversions.

DATA SOURCE

California Department of Finance, Form E-8 - http://www.dof.ca.gov/Forecasting/Demographics/Estimates/E-8/

1990-2010

California Department of Finance, Form E-5 - http://www.dof.ca.gov/Forecasting/Demographics/Estimates/E-5/

2011-2022

U.S. Census Bureau Population and Housing Unit Estimates - https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest.html

2000-2021

CONTACT INFORMATION

vitalsigns.info@bayareametro.gov

METHODOLOGY NOTES (across all datasets for this indicator)

Single-family housing units include single detached units and single attached units. Multi-family housing includes two to four units and five plus or apartment units.

Housing production data for the region, counties, and cities for each year is the difference of annual housing unit estimates from the California Department of Finance. Housing production data for metropolitan areas for each year is the difference of annual housing unit estimates from the Census Bureau’s Population Estimates Program. CA Department of Finance data uses an annual cycle between January 1 and December 31, whereas U.S. Census Bureau data uses an annual cycle from April 1 to March 31 of the following year.

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New Private Housing Authorized by Building Permits for California was 7975.07377 Units in August of 2025, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, New Private Housing Authorized by Building Permits for California reached a record high of 27485.24167 in November of 1988 and a record low of 2305.93624 in July of 2011. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for New Private Housing Authorized by Building Permits for California - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on December of 2025.

New Private Housing Authorized by Building Permits: 1-Unit Structures for California was 3996.44144 Units in August of 2025, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, New Private Housing Authorized by Building Permits: 1-Unit Structures for California reached a record high of 17729.25853 in November of 1988 and a record low of 1398.14679 in January of 2009. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for New Private Housing Authorized by Building Permits: 1-Unit Structures for California - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on November of 2025.

Residential building permits in United States were in short demand in 2018, rising only *** percent across the country. Many large cities have reduced the number of residential building permits, such as Chicago, which handed out ** percent less permits in 2018 than the previous year. Building permits may specifically apply to large housing units with multiple living spaces, to single family houses. Before construction can begin on any new or existing building, a permit must be obtained from the appropriate city council. Building permit numbers have increased significantly in both Houston, Texas and Orlando, Florida metro areas, with **** and **** percent more permits issued in 2018 than 2017, respectively.

Homes are where the heat is Generally speaking, the construction of new homes can be a good indicator of how local economies are fairing, as it can mean that individuals have acquired enough wealth to own their own home or businesses are expanding. The 2018 residential building permit figures provide some insight into the current demographic of cities, particularly with regards to the job market. For instance, in the „snowbird“state of Florida, ** percent of new residents in Orlando were between ages 25 and **, and presumably their careers still play a large role. Orlando-Kissimmee-Sandford metro area is within close range of engineering firms such as Lockheed Martin, as well as new tech companies, which offer higher salaries and better prospects than other industries. Florida unemployment continues to decline and dropped to *** percent in 2018.
Incidentally, cities that tend to be popular for Americans in their early twenties, tend to be the cities that are reducing their number of new residential building permits (Chicago, Illinois; New York, New York; and Los Angeles, California). But this does not mean that these cities are in financial trouble. Chicago’s GDP is steadily growing and unemployment in Illinois was at *** percent in 2018. Bigger and denser cities tend to attract younger groups as they can walk from location to location and remain amongst the excitement that cities have to offer.

In the first quarter of 2025, San Francisco, Chicago, New York, and Honolulu were some of the U.S. cities with the highest housing construction costs. Meanwhile, Phoenix had one of the lowest construction costs for high-end multifamily homes at *** U.S. dollars per square foot and Las Vegas for single-family homes between *** and *** U.S. dollars per square foot. Construction cost disparities As seen here, the construction cost for a high-end multi-family home in San Francisco in the first quarter of 2024 was over ***** more expensive than in Phoenix. Meanwhile, there were also great differences in the cost of building a single-family house in New York and in Portland or Seattle. Some factors that may cause these disparities are the construction materials, installation, and composite costs, differing land values, wages, etc. For example, although the price of construction materials in the U.S. was rising at a slower level than in 2022 and 2023, several materials that are essential in most construction projects had growth rates of over **** percent in 2024. Growing industry revenue Despite the economic uncertainty and other challenges, the size of the private construction market in the U.S. rose during the past years. It is important to consider that supply and demand for housing influences the revenue of this segment of the construction market. On the supply side, single-family home construction fell in 2023, but it is expected to rise in 2024 and 2025. On the demand side, some of the U.S. metropolitan areas with the highest sale prices of single-family homes were located in California, with San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara at the top of the ranking.

California Building Permits - New Homes - Historical chart and current data through 2025.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Construction: Residential Building Construction in California (SMU06000002023610001) from Jan 1990 to Aug 2025 about buildings, residential, construction, CA, employment, and USA.

In 2024, Texas had the highest construction spending by the state and local governments in the United States. Meanwhile, those government levels spent **** billion U.S. dollars in California, which was a much higher amount than in New York, Florida, or any other state. It is important to consider, nevertheless, that these figures do not show the total construction output of the territory, but only public spending by those government levels.What elements determine construction value?Several factors play into the value of the construction put in place such as the costs in which each project incurs. Contractors facing shortages in construction materials or a rise in their cost are some of the situations that can cause an increase in the construction value. It is also necessary to factor in the cost of labor of construction workers in non-supervisory and in managerial positions, as well as that of specialized workers such as engineers and architects. Finally, taxes and fees, the contractor’s profit, and other costs are also considered.Which states have the highest construction costs?Some of the U.S. cities with the highest costs for construction materials, installation, and composite correspond to the states with more value of construction put in place. Similarly, the wages in the private construction sector of those U.S. states, such as New York, California, and Texas, were also above the national average. Although Florida ranks low in the aforementioned aspects, it has been one of the states with the most residential building permits issued during the last couple of years.

The number of building permits for single-family homes in Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim fell slightly in 2024. That year, there were ****** permits issued for single-family homes in the metropolitan area of Los Angeles.

The average price per square foot of floor space in new single-family housing in the United States decreased after the great financial crisis, followed by several years of stagnation. Since 2012, the price has continuously risen, hitting ****** U.S. dollars per square foot in 2024. In 2024, the average sales price of a new home exceeded ******* U.S. dollars. Development of house sales in the U.S. One of the reasons for rising property prices is the gradual growth of house sales between 2011 and 2020. This period was marked by the gradual recovery following the subprime mortgage crisis and a growing housing sentiment. Another significant factor for the housing demand was the growing number of new household formations each year. Despite this trend, housing transactions plummeted in 2021, amid soaring prices and borrowing costs. In 2021, the average construction cost for single-family housing rose by nearly ** percent year-on-year, and in 2022, the increase was even higher, at close to ** percent. Financing a house purchase Mortgage interest rates in the U.S. rose dramatically in 2022 and remained elevated until 2024. In 2020, a homebuyer could lock in a 30-year fixed interest rate of under ***** percent, whereas in 2024, the average rate for the same mortgage type was more than twice higher. That has led to a decline in homebuyer sentiment, and an increasing share of the population pessimistic about buying a home in the current market.

VITAL SIGNS INDICATOR Housing Permits (LU3)

FULL MEASURE NAME Permitted housing units

LAST UPDATED October 2019

DESCRIPTION Housing growth is measured in terms of the number of units that local jurisdictions permit throughout a given year. A permitted unit is a unit that a city or county has authorized for construction.

DATA SOURCE Construction Industry Research Board Table 3: Residential Units and Valuation (1967-2010) No link available

California Housing Foundation/Construction Industry Research Board California Construction Trends (2011-2013) http://www.mychf.org/cirb/

Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) – Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) Housing Permits Database (2014-2017) http://opendata.mtc.ca.gov

CONTACT INFORMATION vitalsigns.info@bayareametro.gov

METHODOLOGY NOTES (across all datasets for this indicator) Bay Area housing permits data prior to 2014 comes from the California Housing Foundation/Construction Industry Research Board. Data from 2014 to 2017 comes from the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) – Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) Housing Permits Database.

Single-family housing units include detached, semi-detached, row house and town house units. Row houses and town houses are included as single-family units when each unit is separated from the adjacent unit by an unbroken ground-to-roof party or fire wall. Condominiums are included as single-family units when they are of zero-lot-line or zero-property-line construction; when units are separated by an air space; or, when units are separated by an unbroken ground-to-roof party or fire wall. Multi-family housing includes duplexes, three-to-four-unit structures and apartment-type structures with five units or more. Multi-family also includes condominium units in structures of more than one living unit that do not meet the single-family housing definition. In the permits data from 2014 to 2017, single-family units include all units not strictly classified as multi-family. This may include secondary units.

Each multi-family unit is counted separately even though they may be in the same building. Total units is the sum of single-family and multi-family units. County data is available from 1967 whereas city data is available from 1990. City data is only available for incorporated cities and towns. All permits in unincorporated cities and towns are included under their respective county’s unincorporated total. Permit data is not available for years when the city or town was not incorporated.

Affordable housing is the total number of permitted units affordable to low and very low income households. Housing affordable to very low income households are households making below 50% of the area median income. Housing affordable to low income households are households making between 50% and 80% of the area median income. Housing affordable to moderate income households are households making below 80% and 120% of the area median income. Housing affordable to above moderate income households are households making above 120% of the area median income.

Permit data is missing for the following cities and years: Clayton, 1990-2007 Lafayette, 1990-2007 Moraga, 1990-2007 Orinda, 1990-2007 San Ramon, 1990

Building permit data for metropolitan areas for each year is the sum of non-seasonally adjusted monthly estimates from the Building Permit Survey. The Bay Area values are the sum of the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward MSA and the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara MSA. The counties included in these areas are: San Francisco, Marin, Contra Costa, Alameda, San Mateo, Santa Clara, and San Benito.

Permit values reflect the number of units permitted in each respective year.

VITAL SIGNS INDICATOR
Housing Permits (LU3)

FULL MEASURE NAME
Permitted housing units

LAST UPDATED
February 2023

DESCRIPTION
Housing growth is measured in terms of the number of units that local jurisdictions permit throughout a given year. A permitted unit is a unit that a city or county has authorized for construction.

DATA SOURCE
California Housing Foundation/Construction Industry Research Board (CIRB) - https://www.cirbreport.org/
Construction Review report (1967-2022)

Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) – Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) - https://data.bayareametro.gov/Development/HCD-Annual-Progress-Report-Jurisdiction-Summary/nxbj-gfv7
Housing Permits Database (2014-2021)

Census Bureau Building Permit Survey - https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/County/
Building permits by county (annual, monthly)

CONTACT INFORMATION
vitalsigns.info@bayareametro.gov

METHODOLOGY NOTES (across all datasets for this indicator)
Bay Area housing permits data by single/multi family come from the California Housing Foundation/Construction Industry Research Board (CIRB). Affordability breakdowns from 2014 to 2021 come from the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) – Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) Housing Permits Database.

Single-family housing units include detached, semi-detached, row house and town house units. Row houses and town houses are included as single-family units when each unit is separated from the adjacent unit by an unbroken ground-to-roof party or fire wall. Condominiums are included as single-family units when they are of zero-lot-line or zero-property-line construction; when units are separated by an air space; or, when units are separated by an unbroken ground-to-roof party or fire wall. Multi-family housing includes duplexes, three-to-four-unit structures and apartment-type structures with five units or more. Multi-family also includes condominium units in structures of more than one living unit that do not meet the single-family housing definition.

Each multi-family unit is counted separately even though they may be in the same building. Total units is the sum of single-family and multi-family units. County data is available from 1967 whereas city data is available from 1990. City data is only available for incorporated cities and towns. All permits in unincorporated cities and towns are included under their respective county’s unincorporated total. Permit data is not available for years when the city or town was not incorporated.

Affordable housing is the total number of permitted units affordable to low and very low income households. Housing affordable to very low income households are households making below 50% of the area median income. Housing affordable to low income households are households making between 50% and 80% of the area median income. Housing affordable to moderate income households are households making below 80% and 120% of the area median income. Housing affordable to above moderate income households are households making above 120% of the area median income.

Permit data is missing for the following cities and years:
Clayton, 1990-2007
Lafayette, 1990-2007
Moraga, 1990-2007
Orinda, 1990-2007
San Ramon, 1990

Building permit data for metropolitan areas for each year is the sum of non-seasonally adjusted monthly estimates from the Census Building Permit Survey. The Bay Area values are the sum of the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward MSA and the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara MSA. The counties included in these areas are: San Francisco, Marin, Contra Costa, Alameda, San Mateo, Santa Clara, and San Benito.

Permit values reflect the number of units permitted in each respective year. Note that the data columns come from difference sources. The columns (SFunits, MFunits, TOTALunits, SF_Share and MF_Share) are sourced from CIRB. The columns (VeryLowunits, Lowunits, Moderateunits, AboveModerateunits, VeryLow_Share, Low_Share, Moderate_Share, AboveModerate_Share, Affordableunits and Affordableunits_Share) are sourced from the ABAG Housing Permits Database. Due to the slightly different methodologies that exist within each of those datasets, the total units from each of the two sources might not be consistent with each other.

As shown, three different data sources are used for this analysis of housing permits issued in the Bay Area. Data from the Construction Industry Research Board (CIRB) represents the best available data source for examining housing permits issued over time in cities and counties across the Bay Area, dating back to 1967. In recent years, Annual Progress Report (APR) data collected by the California Department of Housing and Community Development has been available for analyzing housing permits issued by affordability levels. Since CIRB data is only available for California jurisdictions, the U.S. Census Bureau provides the best data source for comparing housing permits issued across different metropolitan areas. Notably, annual permit totals for the Bay Area differ across these three data sources, reflecting the limitations of needing to use different data sources for different purposes.

As of May 2025, most of the buildings pre-certified, certified, and registered by the International WELL Building Institute were in California, New York, and Texas. The total surface area of the buildings in the registry of WELL amounted to over ****** million square feet in California, ****** million square feet in New York, and ***** million square feet in Texas. Illinois and Florida also had more than *** million square feet of buildings certified or registered by the institute.

VITAL SIGNS INDICATOR
Housing Production (LU4)

FULL MEASURE NAME
Produced housing units by unit type

LAST UPDATED
February 2023

DESCRIPTION
Housing production is measured in terms of the number of units that local jurisdictions produces throughout a given year. The annual production count captures housing units added by new construction and annexations, subtracts demolitions and destruction from natural disasters, and adjusts for units lost or gained by conversions.

DATA SOURCE
California Department of Finance, Form E-8 - http://www.dof.ca.gov/Forecasting/Demographics/Estimates/E-8/
1990-2010

California Department of Finance, Form E-5 - http://www.dof.ca.gov/Forecasting/Demographics/Estimates/E-5/
2011-2022

U.S. Census Bureau Population and Housing Unit Estimates - https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest.html
2000-2021

CONTACT INFORMATION
vitalsigns.info@bayareametro.gov

METHODOLOGY NOTES (across all datasets for this indicator)
Single-family housing units include single detached units and single attached units. Multi-family housing includes two to four units and five plus or apartment units.

Housing production data for the region, counties, and cities for each year is the difference of annual housing unit estimates from the California Department of Finance. Housing production data for metropolitan areas for each year is the difference of annual housing unit estimates from the Census Bureau’s Population Estimates Program. CA Department of Finance data uses an annual cycle between January 1 and December 31, whereas U.S. Census Bureau data uses an annual cycle from April 1 to March 31 of the following year.

Comprehensive 2025 construction cost dataset for single family home projects in San Francisco, California, including labor rates, material costs, permit fees, timeline data, and market trends

Comprehensive 2025 construction cost dataset for multi-family home projects in Los Angeles, California, including labor rates, material costs, permit fees, timeline data, and market trends

All Employees: Construction: Nonresidential Building Construction in California was 79.90000 Thous. of Persons in March of 2025, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, All Employees: Construction: Nonresidential Building Construction in California reached a record high of 87.60000 in July of 2023 and a record low of 43.20000 in January of 1993. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for All Employees: Construction: Nonresidential Building Construction in California - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on November of 2025.

This statistic shows the number of residential construction establishments in the United States in 2016, broken down by state. In 2016, there were ****** enterprises in the residential construction industry in California.

Comprehensive 2025 construction cost dataset for home improvements projects in California, including labor rates, material costs, permit fees, timeline data, and market trends