More than 15,700 housing starts are on file with HBW for Florida, reflecting a 34% increase in new residential construction in comparison to the first quarter of last year.

Image courtesy of CarruthPhoto.com

A recent article in U.S. News highlighted the top 20 most desirable places to live in the U.S.  Not surprisingly, 25% (5 cities) of the top locations were in Florida.  When looking at the latest HBW residential construction reports for the first quarter of 2016, Florida continues to shine with 15,745 housing starts on file and a 34% increase (vs. Q1 2015) in new residential construction.

Florida New Residential Construction Permits Q1 (2015 vs. 2016)

Central Florida is at the top for total new residential construction permits in the first quarter. The area has 3,249 housing starts on file for this period, a 29.3% increase in comparison to Q1 2015.   Orlando is definitely on the rise in Central Florida; the city was listed at #16 by U.S. News as one of the top 20 most desired places to live.  In Q1, Orlando (Orange County) was #1 in the HBW database for total housing starts.  With 1,400 starts on file for the quarter, the county has experienced a 34% increase in new residential construction (vs. 2015).

Southwest Florida is also strong at the start of this year with 3,207 housing starts in Q1, a 54.6% increase in comparison to 2015.  Additionally, two cities in this region were identified as top places to live in the previously referenced report by U.S. News… Sarasota (#13 – U.S. News) and Fort Myers (#17 – U.S. News) both experienced more than 50% growth in residential construction in the first quarter of 2016.  The southwest counties of Lee, Collier, Manatee and Sarasota all held spots on the HBW list of top 10 counties for total housing starts in Q1.  As for growth, the southwest county of Charlotte was #1 in the state for growth with a nearly 153% increase in new residential construction over Q1 of last year.

As for total permits, the top three counties were spread across the state in Central, West and Northeast Florida.  As previously mentioned, Orange County took the lead statewide.  Just a short road trip from Orange County is Hillsborough County (Tampa).  Along with Tampa being listed as the #12 top desired town to live in the U.S. (source: U.S. News), it is the second highest for total housing starts.  With 926 starts on file for this period, Hillsborough County experienced more than a 32% increase in residential construction in comparison to Q1 2015.  Just behind Tampa and in the third spot with 894 housing starts, we have St. Johns County. St. Johns is another area experiencing substantial growth with a nearly 45% increase in new residential construction permits on file (vs. Q1 2015).  Here’s a closer look at the top counties for total housing starts in the first quarter of this year:

Florida 10 Top Counties for Total Residential Permits – Q1 2016

Earlier this week, Realtor.com identified America’s “Boom Towns”.  Boom Towns are areas that are well, booming.  According to the report, Miami (zip code: 33132) is expected to see households grow by 14.9% over the next five years. In just the first quarter of this year, and based on the latest from HBW, Miami-Dade County has seen a 60% increase in housing starts in comparison to the same time last year.  Although not in our top ten counties this quarter for total new permits, Miami-Dade is the #1 county in Southeast Florida and second highest statewide for new homes valued over $500k.  Other areas that are seeing the most new residential construction valued greater than $500k are Orange County (#1) and Palm Beach County (#3).  Across the state, in Q1 of this year there have been nearly 1,200 housing starts for homes of higher value (>$500k), making up approximately 7.5% of new residential construction permits on file for Florida this period.

FL Residential Permits for Homes > $500k – Q1 2016

Information utilized for the graphs and above listed figures was directly derived from HBW construction data reports. To gain access to the HBW database and receive custom and detailed reports on the latest building activity in Florida, Georgia, Texas, Alabama, and Oklahoma, please contact HBW for details.