UTAH HOUSING BUILDING PERMITS decreased from 3,070 in March to 2,089 in April, a 32% decrease.1 Interestingly, this came just after a March in which the greater Salt Lake City area (MSA) saw the highest number of housing permits in decades, and perhaps ever – over 1,500. The next month, they plummeted: April saw a decrease to just over 800.2
Meanwhile, regional housing start3 estimates across the West indicate a dramatic dropoff, from 325,000 in March to 184,000 in April (a 43% fall).4 However, data still to be released may reveal Utah is outperforming the region as a whole, given its better performance on other economic indicators such as unemployment.5
1 Ken C. Gardner Policy Institute, Ivory-Boyer Construction Report and Database, https://gardner.utah.edu/economics/ivory-boyer-construction-database/.
2 Federal Reserve of St. Louis, FRED, https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/SALT649BPPRIVSA#0. Seasonally adjusted.
3 At some point after builders get their permits, they begin construction. These are considered housing starts.
4 Census, https://www.census.gov/construction/nrc/pdf/newresconst.pdf.
5 See Utah Foundation, “Significant Statistics: Utah Ranks Lowest in Unemployment Claims as a Percentage of Workforce,” May 2020, www.utahfoundation.org/2020/05/sigstatunemployment/.
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