Counties in Illinois by housing units authorized by building permits

Name: Counties in Illinois by housing units authorized by building permits, 2023
Creator: U.S. Census Bureau
License: Public domain (US federal government work, citation requested)

Cook County had the highest housing units authorized by building permits of 98 counties in 2023, at 4,854. White County had the lowest, at 0. The median was 21. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Highest4,854Cook County

Lowest0White County

Median2198 counties

Top 40 counties, 2023

CSV Chart (SVG)

count. Source: Invokely calculation with data from U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2026-10-10.

Full ranking

Rank	Counties	2023 count
1	Cook County Estimated	4,854
2	Kane County Estimated	2,149
3	Will County Estimated	1,338
4	McHenry County Estimated	1,169
5	Kendall County Estimated	1,125
6	DuPage County Estimated	973
7	Lake County Estimated	819
8	Champaign County Estimated	583
9	St. Clair County Estimated	540
10	Madison County Estimated	340
11	DeKalb County Estimated	281
12	Sangamon County Estimated	238
13	McLean County Estimated	215
14	Winnebago County Estimated	171
15	Williamson County Estimated	129
16	Ogle County Estimated	128
17	LaSalle County Estimated	92
17	Peoria County Estimated	92
19	Rock Island County Estimated	88
20	Jersey County Estimated	87
21	Kankakee County Estimated	86
22	Effingham County Estimated	65
22	Monroe County Estimated	65
24	Adams County Estimated	61
24	Macoupin County Estimated	61
26	Lawrence County Estimated	58
27	Clinton County Estimated	56
28	Grundy County Estimated	55
29	Warren County Estimated	49
30	Tazewell County Estimated	46
31	Douglas County Estimated	44
32	Moultrie County Estimated	37
33	Jo Daviess County Estimated	36
33	Woodford County Estimated	36
35	Shelby County Estimated	35
36	Macon County Estimated	34
37	Bond County Estimated	32
38	Coles County Estimated	30
39	Boone County Estimated	29
39	Christian County Estimated	29
41	Fulton County Estimated	26
41	Piatt County Estimated	26
41	Whiteside County Estimated	26
44	Livingston County Estimated	25
44	Washington County Estimated	25
46	Lee County Estimated	24
47	Carroll County Estimated	22
47	Henry County Estimated	22
49	Montgomery County Estimated	21
50	Perry County Estimated	20
51	Bureau County Estimated	18
51	Franklin County Estimated	18
53	Mercer County Estimated	16
54	Pike County Estimated	15
54	Putnam County Estimated	15
56	Crawford County Estimated	14
56	Stephenson County Estimated	14
58	Iroquois County Estimated	13
59	Calhoun County Estimated	12
59	De Witt County Estimated	12
61	Union County Estimated	11
62	Massac County Estimated	9
63	Edgar County Estimated	8
63	Ford County Estimated	8
63	Marshall County Estimated	8
63	Menard County Estimated	8
63	Vermilion County Estimated	8
68	Logan County Estimated	7
68	Mason County Estimated	7
70	Clay County Estimated	6
70	Jackson County Estimated	6
72	Marion County Estimated	5
73	Cass County Estimated	4
73	Jefferson County Estimated	4
73	Randolph County Estimated	4
76	Fayette County Estimated	3
76	Henderson County Estimated	3
76	Richland County Estimated	3
79	Brown County Estimated	2
79	Cumberland County Estimated	2
79	Morgan County Estimated	2
79	Stark County Estimated	2
83	Clark County Estimated	1
83	Greene County Estimated	1
83	Knox County Estimated	1
83	McDonough County Estimated	1
87	Alexander County Estimated	0
87	Hancock County Estimated	0
87	Hardin County Estimated	0
87	Jasper County Estimated	0
87	Johnson County Estimated	0
87	Pope County Estimated	0
87	Pulaski County Estimated	0
87	Saline County Estimated	0
87	Schuyler County Estimated	0
87	Wabash County Estimated	0
87	Wayne County Estimated	0
87	White County Estimated	0

Other periods

2025
2024
2023

About this ranking

Annual number of new privately owned housing units authorized by building permits, from the US Census Bureau Building Permits Survey.

Final annual county estimates include imputation for missing reports. Counts housing units, not buildings, starts, completions or sales. Covers permit-issuing areas; areas where permits are not required are outside the survey. Not seasonally adjusted or expressed as an annualized monthly rate. The total is the sum of units in the four published structure categories; inputs are retained.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Building Permits Survey: final annual county estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized, including imputation. https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/County/co2023a.txt. Retrieved 2026-10-10.

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Rank Counties in Illinois by housing units authorized by building permits using official data, and cite the source.

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Questions

Which county has the highest housing units authorized by building permits?

Cook County, with 4,854 in 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest housing units authorized by building permits?

White County, with 0 in 2023.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey: final annual county estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized, including imputation. Retrieved 2026-10-10.