Is the Southeast’s Residential Rebound for Real?
The dollar volume of new Southeast residential construction contracts is starting off 2010 at a brisker pace than last year, according to new information from McGraw-Hill Construction, publisher of Southeast Construction.
Through February, nine of the four-state region’s 10 largest metropolitan markets for residential construction—five of them now located at least partly in the Carolinas—experienced increased activity compared to the same period of a year ago.
The Tampa metro area was in first place, thanks to a 37% increase and more than $237.2 million in new housing starts. Atlanta’s residential starts improved by 13% for a second-place total of more than $229 million.
But it was the Carolina cities that showed some of the biggest gains. The Raleigh, N.C., residential market grew 73% through the first two months of the year to generate $227.2 million in new starts and place third. The Charleston, S.C., market—perhaps showing an impact from Boeing’s new plant—saw a 41% uptick and $107.5 million in new residential contracts. Meanwhile, Columbia, S.C., entered the Southeast’s top-10 list by seeing its market jump 112%.
| Rank | Rank | Metropolitan Area | 2 mo 2009 | 2 mo 2010 | % Chg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regional | U.S. | ||||
| 1 | 9 | Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | 172,571 | 237,162 | 37% |
| 2 | 10 | Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA | 202,264 | 229,028 | 13% |
| 3 | Raleigh-Cary, NC | 131,068 | 227,160 | 73% | |
| 4 | Orlando, FL | 181,220 | 198,296 | 9% | |
| 5 | Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC | 172,136 | 188,090 | 9% | |
| 6 | Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Miami Beach, FL | 165,552 | 128,662 | -22% | |
| 7 | Jacksonville, FL | 73,131 | 128,262 | 75% | |
| 8 | Charleston-North Charleston, SC | 76,145 | 107,503 | 41% | |
| 9 | Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC | 52,586 | 101,472 | 93% | |
| 10 | Columbia, SC | 37,540 | 79,485 | 112% |
| Rank | Metropolitan Area | 2 mo 2009 | 2 mo 2010 | % Chg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. | ||||
| 1 | Houston-Baytown-Sugar Land, TX | 579,344 | 798,228 | 38% |
| 2 | Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 508,361 | 789,417 | 55% |
| 3 | New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA | 1,225,675 | 655,372 | -47% |
| 4 | Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 225,666 | 388,920 | 72% |
| 5 | Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ | 150,784 | 304,244 | 102% |
| 6 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 193,431 | 293,261 | 52% |
| 7 | Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA | 223,453 | 291,756 | 31% |
| 8 | Austin-Round Rock, TX | 223,510 | 268,844 | 20% |
| 9 | Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | 172,571 | 237,162 | 37% |
| 10 | Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA | 202,264 | 229,028 | 13% |
Of the Southeast’s 10 largest markets, only the Miami-Fort Lauderdale metro experienced a decline. This area’s residential volume fell 22% compared to the first two months of 2009, and placed sixth overall with nearly $128.7 million in new housing starts.
Nationally, Houston and Dallas battled it out for the top spots, while the Southeast cities of Tampa and Atlanta garnered ninth and tenth overall, respectively.
