Residential construction in Texas remained steady in comparison to 2014, but there were significant increases in activity for both Dallas and San Antonio.
When reviewing HBW’s latest Building Activity Trend Report for new residential construction in 2015, Texas experienced steady activity in comparison to 2014 with a 1% increase in starts on file. Dallas (+13%) and San Antonio (+8%) both reflected substantial increases in starts, while Houston dropped 6% and the Austin area decreased by 2%. When viewing reports by county, there were gains and losses in all metropolitan areas. To gain a more comprehensive understanding of the highs and lows of residential construction activity throughout the state, we reviewed total new residential permits in each area, greatest increases since 2014, as well as the counties that experienced the most residential construction with values exceeding $500k.
Total Housing Starts
When reviewing the areas of Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Austin, there was a 1% increase in housing starts in 2015. Although the Houston area was down 6% in comparison to 2014, it led the state with 30,870 new residential construction permits on file for the year. With the Dallas area being ahead of 2014 residential construction activity by 13%, it is no surprise that it was the second highest for total starts with 21,181 new permits added to the HBW database. Housing starts in the Austin area dropped slightly (-2%) since 2014 and remained steady with 9,211 starts, and although the San Antonio area had the fewest housing starts (6,101) on file for the year, it held strong with an 8% increase in activity since 2014. The top three counties for total starts statewide were as follows: Harris (Houston) – 15,105 permits; Fort Bend (Houston) – 6,869 permits; Collin (Dallas) – 6,580 permits.
Texas New Residential Construction Permit Totals – 2014 vs. 2015
Residential Construction Growth
As previously mentioned, the Dallas area led the Lone Star State in growth during 2015 as housing starts were up by 13%. To really understand where the growth is most concentrated, we broke it down county by county to identify the most significant gains statewide. Comal County (San Antonio) experienced massive gains in starts (2,067) since 2014 with a 40.7% increase in new residential permits. Although the Houston area saw a 6% dip in activity, the county of Brazoria (Houston) was second highest for growth with 2,566 starts on file for the year, a 37.4% increase from the previous year. In the third top spot, Denton County (Dallas) had a notable 31.7% gain with 3,291 new permits in 2015. Guadalupe (San Antonio) and Ellis (Dallas) counties held in the fourth and fifth top spots with increases of 23.2% and 22.1%.
Texas Top 5 Counties for Residential Construction Growth 2015
Residential Construction >$500k
In 2015, Texas soared in construction of homes with values in excess of $500,000. With nearly 3,500 housing starts in this bracket there was more than an 11% increase in higher value residential construction. As in 2014, Dallas led the state with 1,782 starts over $500k, a 19% increase in comparison to the previous year. The Dallas county of Collin led the growth with a 30% increase and 440 permits on file for the year. Although Houston dipped slightly (-2%) in construction of higher value homes, it held solid with 1,073 housing starts greater than $500k. Far behind but with a 22% increase since 2014, the Austin area had 432 higher value housing starts in 2015. To identify the areas where the majority of higher end residential construction took place, here’s a breakdown by county:
Texas Top 5 Counties for Residential Construction >$500k – 2015
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 Texas and beyond, please contact HBW for details.