US Single-Family Construction Slows but Multifamily Construction Expands in Q1

According to the latest Home Building Geography Index (HBGI) from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), single-family construction growth slowed sharply across all markets in Q1. In contrast, while multifamily construction continued to contract in the largest markets, it saw significant growth in lower-density areas.

The HBGI tracks single-family and multifamily permit activity across seven US geographies, categorized by population density.

Among these, the strongest single-family growth in Q1 was in small metro core counties, which rose 3.2% year-over-year on a four-quarter moving average basis. The sharpest slowdown occurred in large metro core counties, where the growth rate dropped from 9.4% in 2024Q4 to just 1.3% in Q1.

Multifamily construction in large metro outlying areas jumped 33.2% in Q1—its fastest four-quarter average growth since 2022Q2, when it rose 71.8%. Growth also appeared in three other geographies: micro counties (+29.3%), small metro outlying counties (+18.5%), and non-metro/micro counties (+3.7%).