Building Permits in the United States decreased 2.1% month-over-month to 1.403 million units in August 2026, compared to initial estimates of a larger 2.7% fall to 1.394 million. Permits for buildings with five or more units fell 1.5% to 475,000, and single-family permits decreased 1.6% to 880,000. Regionally, permits fell in the Northeast (-15.8% to 128,000), and the Midwest (-5.8% to 212,000), but rose in the West (2.3% to 315,000) and were unchanged in the South (at 748,000). source: U.S. Census Bureau

Building Permits in the United States decreased to 1403 Thousand in August from 1433 Thousand in July of 2026. Building Permits in the United States averaged 1374.73 Thousand from 1960 until 2026, reaching an all time high of 2419.00 Thousand in December of 1972 and a record low of 513.00 Thousand in March of 2009. This page provides the latest reported value for - United States Building Permits - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news. United States Building Permits - data, historical chart, forecasts and calendar of releases - was last updated on September of 2026.

Building Permits in the United States decreased to 1403 Thousand in August from 1433 Thousand in July of 2026. Building Permits in the United States is expected to be 1360.00 Thousand by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. In the long-term, the United States Building Permits is projected to trend around 1300.00 Thousand in 2027 and 1280.00 Thousand in 2028, according to our econometric models.



Calendar GMT Reference Actual Previous Consensus TEForecast
2026-09-17 12:30 PM
Building Permits Prel
Aug 1.394M 1.433M 1.41M 1.41M
2026-09-24 12:00 PM
Building Permits Final
Aug 1.403M 1.433M 1.394M 1.394M
2026-10-20 12:30 PM
Building Permits Prel
Sep 1.36M


Related Last Previous Unit Reference
Building Permits 1403.00 1433.00 Thousand Aug 2026
Building Permits MoM -2.10 4.30 percent Aug 2026
Construction Spending MoM -0.50 0.00 percent Jul 2026
Home Ownership Rate 65.00 65.30 percent Jun 2026
Housing Starts 1275.00 1309.00 Thousand units Aug 2026
Housing Starts MoM -2.60 -9.00 percent Aug 2026
Housing Starts Multi Family 344.00 444.00 Thousand units Aug 2026
Housing Starts Single Family 918.00 853.00 Thousand units Aug 2026
New Home Sales 684.00 643.00 Thousand units Aug 2026
New Home Sales MoM 6.40 -4.30 percent Aug 2026


United States Building Permits
Building Permits refer to the approvals given by a local jurisdictions before the construction of a new or existing building can legally occur. Not all areas of the United States require a permit for construction.
Actual Previous Highest Lowest Dates Unit Frequency
1403.00 1433.00 2419.00 513.00 1960 - 2026 Thousand Monthly
Volume, SA

News Stream
US Building Permits Fall Less than Initially Thought
Building Permits in the United States decreased 2.1% month-over-month to 1.403 million units in August 2026, compared to initial estimates of a larger 2.7% fall to 1.394 million. Permits for buildings with five or more units fell 1.5% to 475,000, and single-family permits decreased 1.6% to 880,000. Regionally, permits fell in the Northeast (-15.8% to 128,000), and the Midwest (-5.8% to 212,000), but rose in the West (2.3% to 315,000) and were unchanged in the South (at 748,000).
2026-09-24
US Building Permits Fall More than Expected
US building permits fell by 2.7% month-over-month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.394 million in August 2026, below market expectations of 1.41 million. Permits for buildings with five or more units fell 3.1% to 467,000, and single-family permits decreased 1.8% to 878,000. Regionally, permits fell in the Northeast (-15.8% to 128,000), the Midwest (-7.6% to 208,000), the South (-0.4% to 745,000), but rose in the West (1.6% to 313,000).
2026-09-17
US Building Permits Revised Lower
US building permits rose by 4.3% month-over-month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.433 million in July 2026, below preliminary estimates of 1.433 million. Permits for buildings with five or more units surged 7.3% to 482,000, and single-family permits increased 2.5% to 894,000. Regionally, permits rose in the Midwest (10.8% to 225,000), and the South (5.6% to 748,000), but were unchanged in the West (at 308,000) and fell in the Northeast (-1.9% to 152,000).
2026-08-25