North Dakota housing units authorized for construction in 2008 totaled 2,833, which is a decrease of 15.7 percent from 3,360 in 2007. The total value associated with newly authorized housing units peaked in 2006 at $462.3 million and decreased to $398.8 million in 2008.

This month’s “Economic Brief,” a monthly publication from the North Dakota State Data Center at North Dakota State University, focuses on the number and value of new housing units authorized for construction by building permits in North Dakota. The U.S. Census Bureau’s Residential Construction Branch released the data.

The overall decline in newly authorized housing units in North Dakota between 2007 and 2008 was largely the result of 306 fewer single-family homes authorized for construction (from 2,194 in 2007 down to 1,888 in 2008). In addition, North Dakota housing units authorized for construction in multiple-unit structures decreased by 221 in 2008.

“North Dakota’s housing market is showing a slowdown similar to the national market with successive declines in newly authorized homes since 2006,” says Richard Rathge, State Data Center director. “The nearly 16 percent drop between 2007 and 2008 is the largest proportional drop in North Dakota housing construction since 1999.”

In 2008, single-family homes comprised two-thirds (66.6 percent) of new authorized housing in North Dakota. The value of single-family homes authorized for construction averaged $173,819. Since 1980, the average values for new, single-family home construction in North Dakota have risen, on average, 4.8 percent per year.

Nationally, values averaged $192,315 in 2008. Texas, Florida and California captured 28 percent of all new housing units in 2008, which is unchanged from 2007.

NDSU Agriculture Communication