In defiance of national trends, housing permits in the Huntsville Metropolitan Area surged to the highest they have been in a decade.

Nearly 6000 new permits were issued in the metro in 2023, according to Carmen Rogobete, Communications Strategist with Point2.

This reflects a 47% increase in permits issued over 2022.

The jump in permitting placed the Huntsville metro area in the lead among the country’s medium-sized metro areas with a population of 500,000 to 1 million.

This permitting activity could indicate some relief on the way for the growing housing demand in the Huntsville metro.

Multi-family housing units are responsible for much of the growth seen in the metro area, based on Point2 data analysis.

In the Huntsville metro area, permits for multi-family structures with 5 or more units grew by 78%. Permits for 2- to 4-unit buildings grew by 93%.

In contrast, multi-family unit permitting in the City of Huntsville decreased by 34%, as reported in the Huntsville Development Review of 2023.

Within the Huntsville city limits, multi-family occupancy rates remained above 90% according to Axiometrics data reported by the City of Huntsville.

At the same time, single-family lot approvals remained above average in the city, according to the Development Review data. Permits for single-family homes rose by 15% in 2023.

Huntsville continues to see high demand for single-family housing.

Single-family home permits only rose by 7% across the metro according to Point2 data, a small increase that may signal steady expansion in the local housing market.

This housing expansion outside of Huntsville city limits indicates that many who come to work in the city will have to plan on longer commutes.

In January 2022, the Comprehensive Housing Market Analysis for Huntsville forecasted a 3-year housing demand of 12,050 sales units and 3,225 rental units. The Analysis noted that these estimates reflect the production necessary to achieve a balanced market by January 1, 2025.

Of the permits pulled in the Huntsville metro in 2023, roughly 3900 were for single-family units, just under 100 were for 2- to 4-unit buildings, and a little over 1900 were for buildings with 5 or more units.

In the City of Huntsville, 4,693 Certificates of Occupancy were granted in 2023. This was the highest number since record-keeping began in 1983, according to the Huntsville Development Review 2023.

State-wide, multi-family unit permitting grew by a little more than 10%. Overall, the growth in the Huntsville Metropolitan Area has contributed to the 2% increase in housing permits statewide.