U.S. Census Bureau: Monthly New Residential Construction, December 2021

Special Notice: Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in the Northeast increased 111.9% (+/- 3.8%) from November to December. In December, there was a large increase in building permits issued in Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia enacted several real estate tax changes for residential projects permitted after December 31, 2021. State and local estimates on housing units authorized by building permits are scheduled to be released on January 26, 2022 at www.census.gov/construction/bps/.

The U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development jointly announced the following new residential construction statistics for December 2021:

Building Permits

Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,873,000. This is 9.1 percent (±1.1 percent) above the revised November rate of 1,717,000 and is 6.5 percent (±1.7 percent) above the December 2020 rate of 1,758,000. Single-family authorizations in December were at a rate of 1,128,000; this is 2.0 percent (±1.3 percent) above the revised November figure of 1,106,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 675,000 in December.

An estimated 1,724,700 housing units were authorized by building permits in 2021. This is 17.2 percent (±0.6 percent) above the 2020 figure of 1,471,100.

Housing Starts

Privately-owned housing starts in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,702,000. This is 1.4 percent (±10.1 percent)* above the revised November estimate of 1,678,000 and is 2.5 percent (±13.8 percent)* above the December 2020 rate of 1,661,000. Single-family housing starts in December were at a rate of 1,172,000; this is 2.3 percent (±9.8 percent)* below the revised November figure of 1,199,000. The December rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 524,000.

An estimated 1,595,100 housing units were started in 2021. This is 15.6 percent (±4.0 percent) above the 2020 figure of 1,379,600.

Housing Completions

Privately-owned housing completions in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,295,000. This is 8.7 percent (±14.5 percent)* below the revised November estimate of 1,418,000 and is 6.6 percent (±10.4 percent)* below the December 2020 rate of 1,386,000. Single-family housing completions in December were at a rate of 990,000; this is 3.9 percent (±13.3 percent)* above the revised November rate of 953,000. The December rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 299,000.

An estimated 1,337,800 housing units were completed in 2021. This is 4.0 percent (±3.2 percent)* above the 2020 figure of 1,286,900.

For the full December report, click here.

Notice of methodology change: Beginning with the January 2022 New Residential Construction release on February 17, 2022, the monthly Building Permits Survey design will change from a representative sample to a cut-off sample. This change will allow complete local and county data on new housing units authorized by permits to be published on a monthly basis going forward. For additional details on this change and the impact on New Residential Construction, see our FAQ document.

The January report is scheduled for release on February 17, 2022. View the full schedule in the Economic Briefing Room: www.census.gov/economic-indicators/. The full text and tables for this release can be found at www.census.gov/construction/nrc/.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau