Editor's Note: This story originally appeared on Construction Coverage.
The U.S. housing market remains a critical economic issue, with housing affordability and supply at the forefront of bipartisan policy agendas.
According to a recent Freddie Mac analysis, the U.S. faces a shortfall of 3.7 million housing units, a deficit that continues to drive high prices for both homeowners and renters.
Expanding multi-family housing — such as townhomes, condos, and apartments — offers one of the most effective solutions for addressing this shortage and improving affordability.
Multi-family developments allow for higher housing density in urban and suburban areas and are generally more cost-efficient to build than single-family homes, making them a faster and cheaper way to increase supply.
The following analysis was conducted by researchers at Construction Coverage, using data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Refer to the detailed methodology section at the end for more information.
Keep reading to see which large metros in the U.S. are building the most new multi-family housing units.
15. Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 47.4%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 40.7%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 8,555
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 262
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 474
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 7,819
- Total new single-family units: 9,509
14. Providence-Warwick, RI-MA
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 48.9%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 40.4%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 1,281
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 364
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 99
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 818
- Total new single-family units: 1,339
13. Rochester, NY
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 49.1%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 29.2%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 884
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 58
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 102
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 724
- Total new single-family units: 917
12. Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 49.1%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 36.0%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 15,859
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 598
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 135
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 15,126
- Total new single-family units: 16,435
11. Omaha, NE-IA
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 51.3%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 26.0%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 3,692
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 134
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 15
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 3,543
- Total new single-family units: 3,505
10. San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 53.1%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 41.5%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 3,138
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 84
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 64
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 2,990
- Total new single-family units: 2,776
9. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 56.0%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 43.5%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 15,004
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 1,370
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 365
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 13,269
- Total new single-family units: 11,777
8. Columbus, OH
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 56.4%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 30.0%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 7,868
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 108
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 115
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 7,645
- Total new single-family units: 6,094
7. Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 57.8%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 40.0%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 2,346
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 326
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 4
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 2,016
- Total new single-family units: 1,712
6. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 63.8%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 38.7%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 11,431
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 930
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 453
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 10,048
- Total new single-family units: 6,489
5. Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 64.4%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 47.6%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 10,527
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 402
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 120
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 10,005
- Total new single-family units: 5,825
4. Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 66.0%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 34.0%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 1,245
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 34
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 42
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 1,169
- Total new single-family units: 642
3. Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 66.8%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 46.9%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 7,501
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 340
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 314
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 6,847
- Total new single-family units: 3,734
2. San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 70.8%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 38.5%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 8,195
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 618
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 329
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 7,248
- Total new single-family units: 3,377
1. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ
- Share of new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 78.4%
- Share of existing housing units in multi-family structures: 58.4%
- Total new housing units authorized in multi-family structures: 45,399
- Total new housing units in structures with 2 units: 1,828
- Total new housing units in structures with 3-4 units: 1,018
- Total new housing units in structures with 5+ units: 42,553
- Total new single-family units: 12,530
Methodology
The data used in this analysis is from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2024 Building Permit Survey and 2024 American Community Survey.
To determine the locations building the most multi-family housing, researchers at Construction Coverage calculated the share of new privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in multi-family structures (two or more units) in 2024.
In the event of a tie, the location with the greater share of existing housing units in multi-family structures was ranked higher.
The proportion of existing housing units in multi-family structures was calculated using American Community Survey data and excludes mobile homes, boats, RVs, and other similar types of housing.
To improve relevance, only metropolitan areas with complete data available from both sources were included.
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