Houston is the king of Texas homebuilding.
The Bayou City muscled ahead as the top metro in the nation for homebuilding, according to a new report from ConsumerAffairs, with more than 11,000 building permits issued in January and February, the Houston Business Journal reported.
That accounts for 6 percent of all permits issued across 150 major U.S. cities, and nearly 37 percent of all permits issued statewide in Texas. Houston also logged more than 1,300 new construction home sales over the same period, putting it well ahead of other fast-growing metros like Dallas, Phoenix and Atlanta.
The city’s longtime lack of zoning laws has played a role in its rapid homebuilding pace, experts say.
Texas dominated the national top 10. Dallas ranked second with more than 9,800 permits, San Antonio eighth with over 2,000, and Austin ninth with nearly 3,900. Altogether, over 24,000 new construction homes were sold in the top 150 metros, with nearly 174,000 new residential building permits issued nationwide.
Texas cities have drawn homebuyers and developers thanks to a combination of strong job markets, inbound migration and relative housing affordability compared to other major metros.
Nationwide, fast-growing markets like Phoenix, Atlanta, Charlotte and Orlando rounded out the top builder rankings.
Houston’s permitting and sales numbers suggest it will remain one of the country’s busiest residential construction markets well into the year. Some analysts warn that rising materials costs tied to tariff hikes could dampen the momentum.
Tariffs could also reshape Texas’ multifamily rent dynamics.
Twenty-five percent tariffs on imported steel and aluminum, along with potential lumber tariffs, could drive up costs for builders and slow project starts, especially for high-rise multifamily developments.
In Texas markets like Austin and Dallas-Fort Worth, where multifamily vacancy rates have crept up and average rents have been falling, the cost pressures could reverse that trend by curbing future supply. Some developers are already pausing or scaling back projects, according to industry analysts, as they navigate tighter financing and rising construction costs.
— Judah Duke
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