In a significant downturn for the housing market, single-family permits in the United States experienced double-digit declines across all regions in April 2023. The total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 268,205, marking a 29.0% drop compared to April 2022 when the number stood at 377,713, according to the National Association of Home Builders' analyses of statistics.
Examining the year-to-date figures ending in April, single-family permits witnessed declines in all four regions. The Northeast reported the smallest decline at 17.6%, while the West region suffered the steepest decline at 39.0%. The Midwest saw a decline of 27.3%, and the South experienced a decline of 26.4% in single-family permits during this period. As for multifamily permits, the South stood as the sole region to post an increase of 6.0%, while the West, Midwest, and Northeast reported declines of 7.1%, 26.5%, and 31.6%, respectively.
Image: National Association of Home Builders
Analyzing the data between April 2022 YTD and April 2023 YTD, it becomes evident that, apart from New Jersey, all other states and the District of Columbia registered declines in single-family permits. New Jersey managed a modest 1.1% increase, while other states faced declines ranging from 4.5% in Hawaii to a substantial 59.7% in Montana. Among the top ten states issuing the highest number of single-family permits combined, which accounted for 65.0% of the total, Texas, Florida, and North Carolina experienced declines of 31.6%, 27.4%, and 19.3%, respectively.
Looking at multifamily permits, the total number issued nationwide reached 196,589 year-to-date, indicating a 7.6% decrease from April 2022's level of 212,734.
Similarly, between April 2022 YTD and April 2023 YTD, 18 states and the District of Columbia witnessed growth in multifamily permits, while 32 states recorded declines. Notably, North Dakota saw a significant surge in multifamily permits, skyrocketing from 32 to 433, whereas Kansas experienced the largest decline of 73.1%, dropping from 1,801 to 484. Among the top ten states issuing the highest number of multifamily permits, which accounted for 65.4% of the total, Texas saw a 10.7% decline over the past 12 months, while Florida and California saw increases of 29.2% and 2.3%, respectively.
Meanwhile, the sales of newly built, single-family homes in April increased 4.1% to a 683,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate from a downwardly revised reading in March, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. This is the highest level since March 2022. However, sales are down in 2023 thus far by 9.7%.
