A review of permit data for residential construction in Texas during Q1-2021
Based on HBW’s latest Building Activity Trend Report for new residential construction in Texas during the first quarter of this year, the Lone Star State experienced a 13 percent year-over-year increase in new home construction in Q1-2021. From the combined metro areas of Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Austin there were more than 24,270 housing starts added to the HBW database for Texas during the 3-month period. Out of the four areas reviewed, nearly all permits (79 percent) originated from Houston and Dallas, where there were 10,316 and 8,691 new permits respectively, and all regions (with the exception of San Antonio) have demonstrated year-over-year growth patterns ranging from 7 percent to as high as 21 percent.
Here is a closer look at the total permits, leading counties, and rate of growth for residential construction in Houston, Dallas, Austin and San Antonio as based on the latest reports from HBW for Q1-2021:
Houston
Houston ranked #1 for volume of housing starts, having 10,316 new residential construction permits on record in the first quarter of this year; this reflects a 16 percent increase in new home construction in comparison to the same time last year. Out of the five counties that make up the Houston area, the bulk of all new permits originated from Harris (5,312 permits) and Montgomery (2,212 permits) where there were year-over-year increases in new home construction of 29 percent and 18 percent respectively.
Dallas
In the first quarter of this year, Dallas experienced the greatest year-over-year spike in new residential construction. With an impressive 21 percent increase in comparison to the same time last year, there were 8,691 new permits added to the HBW database for the Dallas area during Q1-2021. Out of the six counties that make up the Dallas area, Collin County was a standout as it carried the highest volume of new home construction (3,098 permits), exhibited a massive 90 percent year-over-year increase in new residential construction permit, and held more than half of all higher value (>$500k) housing starts for the Dallas area.
Austin
In Austin, there were 3,728 housing starts during the first quarter of this year, reflecting a 7 percent increase in new residential construction in comparison to the same time last year. Out of the four counties reviewed, nearly all new construction took place in Travis and Williamson where there were 1,781 and 1,603 new permits on record for the first quarter of this year respectively.
San Antonio
During the first quarter of this year, there were 1,536 new residential construction permits added to the HBW database for the San Antonio area, reflecting an 18 percent decrease in new home construction in comparison to Q1-2020. That being stated, not all counties in the San Antonio area are exhibiting a downward pattern. In fact, nearly half of all new home construction took place in Comal County where there has been a major 42 percent year-over-year increase in housing starts resulting in 713 new permits for the three-month period.
To gain more information on the builders, homeowners and permits for the construction activity above, check out HBW for your copy of the latest construction data reports. To gain access to the HBW database and receive custom and detailed reports on the latest residential and commercial building activity in Florida, Georgia, Texas, Alabama, and Oklahoma, please contact HBW for details.