Where are the most new homes being built in the U.S.?

Utah is one of the top states in the country for new home builds, according to a just-released study.

The Beehive State ranked No. 4 on a list of states building the most homes, with 18.6 new housing units authorized last year per 1,000 existing homes, in the analysis from Construction Coverage.

South Carolina is No. 3 on the list from the online source of construction industry research and data, with the same number of new housing units authorized in 2024 per 1,000 existing homes as Utah, 18.6.

The state with the most new builds authorized is Idaho, with 21.2 new units per 1,000 homes already in the state, followed by North Carolina, with 18.8. Arizona, Texas, Florida, Delaware, Georgia and Nevada round out the Top 10.

Last year, there were approximately 1.48 million new homes authorized by building permits, Construction Coverage said, a number slightly higher than the pre-2008 housing crisis average of 1.45 million annually.

But the country still has a long way to go to close the nation’s housing deficit, the study said.

Housing construction has slowed in much of the country, with a national rate of 10.1 units per 1,000 existing homes being authorized. That’s down from 11.7 in 2022. Only 13 states saw an increase from two years prior.

In Utah, there was nearly a 25% drop in new home authorizations between 2022 and 2024, the analysis found, the eighth highest nationwide. In 2022, Utah authorized the construction of 31,749 new homes compared to 23,902 last year.

At the same time, Utah continues to have one of the country’s highest median home prices, at $535,217, compared to $367,969 nationwide. Only Hawaii, California, Massachusetts, Washington, New Jersey and Colorado had more expensive median home costs.

How many new homes were built in Utah cities?

When it comes to cities and surrounding areas nationwide with a population adding up to at least 1 million, what was designated the Salt Lake City-Murray area hit No. 20 for new housing authorizations, with 11 new units per 1,000 existing homes given the go-ahead in 2024.

North Carolina’s Raleigh-Cary area is at the top of the 54 large metro areas ranked, with 28.8 new units per 1,000 existing homes, followed by the areas in and around three Texas cities, Austin, Dallas and Houston; and Arizona’s Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler area.

Besides the Arizona and Utah cities, the only other Western areas that made the top 20 are Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, Nevada, at No. 11; Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, California, at No. 18; and Denver-Aurora-Centennial, Colorado, at No. 19.

The Salt Lake City-Murray area experienced a 46.1% drop from 2022, when 10,102 new homes were authorized compared to last year’s 5,447. It’s “one of the steepest in the nation among large metros,” the study found, behind only the high-priced San Jose and San Francisco areas.

Among mid-sized metro areas, what was designated Provo-Orem-Lehi has the eighth highest number for new housing units permitted last year per 1,000 existing homes, at 27.9, and Ogden, the 37th, at 14.1. North Carolina’s Wilmington area leads the mid-size metros.

And two other Utah areas made the small-sized list, where fewer than 350,000 people live. St. George ranked No. 3, with a measure of 35.6, behind only Idaho Falls and Punta Gorda, Florida. Logan and surrounding areas in Utah and Idaho came in at No. 20.