By the end of December, the number of permits issued county-wide for new home construction (including apartments) will exceed 1,500 for the year.
A Dramatic Shift In The Past Five Years
From 2010 through 2019 the county-wide non-apartment residential permit number averaged 189 units per year. The numbers started to increase slowly in 2020 and have been ramping up consistently for the past five years:
- 2020: 277 permits
- 2021: 427 permits
- 2022: 452 permits
- 2023: 768 permits
- 2024: 1,013 permits
- 2025: 1,232 permits
These county-wide numbers are reported by the Jefferson County Office of Impact Fees, which tracks all new housing construction, both in the municipalities and in the unincorporated areas of the county. The numbers above would be larger if we included the permits for a 309-unit apartment building in 2020 and a 237-unit apartment building in 2025.
Published 2025 Dec 3 in The Observer’s Holiday print issue.
By Steve Pearson