When looking at new home construction, Florida is off to a solid start so far this year.  In January, the Sunshine State experienced a 7 percent month-over-month increase in new residential construction, resulting in more than 8,155 new permits with a total value of $2.4 billion on record with HBW.  Out of the five Florida regions reviewed (Tampa, Southwest, Orlando, Jacksonville, Southeast), the Tampa area held the highest concentration of new home construction activity (2,822 permits), while Orlando carried the highest average value of new residential construction projects (average value: $363,443).

Here is a closer look at the total permits, construction values and leading counties for new home construction throughout Florida during the month of January:

Tampa

As previously mentioned, Tampa ranked #1 for new home construction last month, having 2,822 new permits with a total construction value of approximately $770 million.  The average value of construction in Tampa was $272,778, and well more than half of all new permits originated from the counties of Polk (1,059 permits) and Pasco (738 permits).

Southwest

Next in line behind Tampa, the southwestern region of Florida ranked #2 for new residential construction as there were approximately 2,100 new permits with a total value of nearly $627 million last month.  The average value of new construction was $298,560, and the majority of permits originated from Lee County (908 permits) and Manatee County (571 permits).

Jacksonville

Last month, there were approximately 1,435 new residential construction permits with a total value in excess of $364 million in the Jacksonville area.  The average value of new home construction was lowest in Jacksonville (average value: $254,114) in comparison to other regions reviewed, and the majority of all new permits originated from the counties of St. Johns (609 permits) and Duval (354 permits).

Orlando

In Orlando, there were 1,140 new residential construction permits with a total value of $414.3 million on record last month.  The average value of new home construction was highest in Orlando (average value: $363,443) in comparison to other Florida regions reviewed, and more than half of all new residential construction activity took place in the counties of Brevard (339 permits) and Lake (267 permits).

Southeast

In the southeastern region of Florida there were more than 660 new residential construction permits with a total value of $233 million last month.  The average value of new home construction landed on the higher end of the spectrum (average value: $352,588) in comparison to other Florida regions reviewed, and the county with the greatest concentration of new residential construction activity was St. Lucie (262 permits).

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.