November permit activity pushed the number of single-family permits pulled in the metropolitan area for the year-to-date to 9,989, up 8 percent from last year and on the brink of pushing over 10,000 permits in a calendar year for just the third time on record. Kansas City new home construction will likely break the record of 10,285 permits issued in 1999.

While new-home construction activity has backed off from the record levels established during the summer and early fall, builders are continuing to pull permits at a better than average clip, according to the HBA Executive Vice President Tim Underwood.

“The number of permits issued last month was up more than 5 percent from the five-year average for November,” Underwood said. “That suggests low mortgage rates and improving economic conditions are continuing to drive new home sales. The permit activity and other housing data indicate that home builders remain very positive about the future of the local housing market.”

Underwood said market research shows that despite the rise in new-home construction this year, inventory levels have remained solid without only sporadic surplus inventory in specific price ranges and locations. The undersupply of new homes is most significant in price ranges for first-time homebuyers.

“Sales for both custom and speculative homes have remained strong, allowing builders to avoid excessive build-up in inventory,” Underwood said. “There is certainly a strong demand for more new homes, particular for first-time buyers and employees in certain professions, such as police offers, teachers and health care workers.”

Kansas City, Mo., continues to lead the metro area in single-family new-home permits with 1,827 issued through November. Olathe ranks second with 922 permits, followed by Lee’s Summit with 800 and Overland Park with 768.

Rounding out the top 10 permitting cities through November are Shawnee, 514; Raymore and Kansas City, Kan./Wyandotte County, tied with 416; Grain Valley, 349; Lenexa, 323; and Independence, 304.

The Home Builders Association of Greater Kansas City (HBA) is the voice of the housing industry and the source for housing information. Comprising more than 1,000 member companies, the HBA represents an industry that contributes more than $2.5 billion to the Kansas City economy and supports more than 36,000 jobs in the Greater Kansas City metropolitan area.