Building Permits by ZIP: Where New Housing Supply Is Landing (2026)
The construction-permits card on a dossier is a supply read: how many housing units the permitting jurisdiction has approved in the latest month and over twelve months, split single-family and multi-family, allocated to the parcel's ZIP. A ZIP adding stock during an investor's hold period changes the exit; this report ranks the ZIPs adding the most and gives the national totals behind the card.
- 26,627,606 housing units were permitted over twelve months across 32,901 ZIPs: 15,025,323 single-family and 11,602,282 multi-family (construction-permits read, survey month 202606).
- 18,498 ZIPs recorded any multi-family units; 1,408 ZIPs permitted nothing in twelve months.
- 90001 in Los Angeles County, CA leads the construction-permits table with 15,022 units, ahead of 77002 in Harris County, TX at 13,304.
- The average construction-stress score across scored ZIPs is 47.6 of 100.
construction-permits: the construction-permits signal figures as of 2026-10-20; source the Census Building Permits Survey allocated to ZIPs.
| ZIP (county, state) | 12-month units | Single-family | Multi-family | Construction stress |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 90001 (Los Angeles, CA) | 15,022 | 5,799 | 9,223 | 6.3 |
| 77002 (Harris, TX) | 13,304 | 9,868 | 3,436 | 62.6 |
| 85003 (Maricopa, AZ) | 13,067 | 8,547 | 4,520 | 58.5 |
ZIP areas by twelve-month permitted units (construction-permits, as of 2026-10-20)
ZIP areas adding the most units (construction-permits)
90001 in Los Angeles County, CA: 15,022 units, 9,223 multi-family, stress 6.3; 77002 in Harris County, TX: 13,304 units, 3,436 multi-family, stress 62.6; 85003 in Maricopa County, AZ: 13,067 units, 4,520 multi-family, stress 58.5. One row per county is shown because the survey allocates a jurisdiction's units across its ZIPs.
What construction-permits measures
Permitted units are the Census Bureau's monthly survey of building permits issued by local jurisdictions, counted as housing units rather than permits. The card shows the latest month, the twelve-month total, the single-family and multi-family split, a construction-stress score that compares the twelve-month total with the ZIP's own history, and the FHFA price-stress reading beside it so supply and price are read together.
How construction-permits is computed
Each jurisdiction's units are allocated to the ZIPs inside it by share of housing stock, so the ZIPs of one county carry proportional figures. Construction stress scores the twelve-month total against the trailing history on a 0-100 scale: 100 means the ZIP is permitting far above its own norm. The table is rebuilt when the survey releases, monthly.
How to use construction-permits on a deal
Read permits with the market phase: a recovery-phase ZIP with a very-low supply read is where appreciation has room; a peak-phase ZIP permitting at 100 is where new stock will meet the exit. For rentals, a multi-family surge is the number to watch, because it sets the competing supply for the next two years.
Read construction-permits on your ZIPs
The replacement-cost radar and the ZIP stress report show this card for any ZIP; the live board shows it on every parcel.
Construction-permits refreshes with its source table.
Building Permits by ZIP: Where New Housing Supply Is Landing (2026): questions
Why do several ZIPs show identical permit totals?
The survey reports by permitting jurisdiction, usually a city or a county, and the units are allocated to the ZIPs inside it by housing-stock share.
Are permits the same as completions?
No. A permit is an approval; completions lag by a year or more. The read is forward supply.
Where are property-level permits?
County permit tables are not loaded today; the dossier says so rather than guessing. The ZIP card is the supply read until they fill.
More on the construction-permits signal
Building Permits by ZIP: Where New Housing Supply Is Landing (2026) (construction-permits) is computed from the Census Building Permits Survey allocated to ZIPs; the construction-permits signal is research (construction-permits), not legal advice; nothing on the construction-permits page is tax or construction-permits investment advice, so verify every construction-permits figure with its issuing agency before acting.