Data / Rankings / Housing units authorized by building permits / Cities in North Carolina

Cities in North Carolina by housing units authorized by building permits

Raleigh, NC had the highest housing units authorized by building permits of 59 cities in 2018, at 4,211. Spring Lake, NC had the lowest, at 0. The median was 145 and the figure for North Carolina was 71,691. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest4,211Raleigh, NC
Lowest0Spring Lake, NC
Median14559 cities
North Carolina71,691History

All cities, 2018

Raleigh, NC: 4,211 countRaleigh, NC4,211Durham, NC: 3,230 countDurham, NC3,230Apex, NC: 2,241 countApex, NC2,241Cary, NC: 1,562 countCary, NC1,562Winston-Salem, NC: 1,335 countWinston-Salem, NC1,335Greensboro, NC: 846 countGreensboro, NC846Leland, NC: 803 countLeland, NC803Wake Forest, NC: 764 countWake Forest, NC764Chapel Hill, NC: 718 countChapel Hill, NC718Greenville, NC: 714 countGreenville, NC714Clayton, NC: 624 countClayton, NC624Fuquay-Varina, NC: 602 countFuquay-Varina, NC602Morrisville, NC: 600 countMorrisville, NC600Garner, NC: 542 countGarner, NC542Holly Springs, NC: 512 countHolly Springs, NC512Asheville, NC: 404 countAsheville, NC404Wendell, NC: 361 countWendell, NC361Waxhaw, NC: 355 countWaxhaw, NC355Burlington, NC: 352 countBurlington, NC352Gastonia, NC: 339 countGastonia, NC339Mebane, NC: 284 countMebane, NC284Graham, NC: 275 countGraham, NC275High Point, NC: 267 countHigh Point, NC267Knightdale, NC: 260 countKnightdale, NC260Fayetteville, NC: 241 countFayetteville, NC241Rolesville, NC: 180 countRolesville, NC180Southern Pines, NC: 162 countSouthern Pines, NC162Carrboro, NC: 154 countCarrboro, NC154Zebulon, NC: 148 countZebulon, NC148New Bern, NC: 145 countNew Bern, NC145Boone, NC: 137 countBoone, NC137Wilson, NC: 128 countWilson, NC128Pinehurst, NC: 125 countPinehurst, NC125Aberdeen, NC: 118 countAberdeen, NC118Asheboro, NC: 102 countAsheboro, NC102Monroe, NC: 88 countMonroe, NC88Sanford, NC: 74 countSanford, NC74Morganton, NC: 70 countMorganton, NC70Kinston, NC: 62 countKinston, NC62Elizabeth City, NC: 61 countElizabeth City, NC61Winterville, NC: 60 countWinterville, NC60Goldsboro, NC: 59 countGoldsboro, NC59Morehead City, NC: 53 countMorehead City, NC53Roanoke Rapids, NC: 48 countRoanoke Rapids, NC48Kings Mountain, NC: 33 countKings Mountain, NC33Thomasville, NC: 32 countThomasville, NC32Lexington, NC: 28 countLexington, NC28Jacksonville, NC: 23 countJacksonville, NC23Waynesville, NC: 23 countWaynesville, NC23Kernersville, NC: 18 countKernersville, NC18Havelock, NC: 14 countHavelock, NC14Hope Mills, NC: 12 countHope Mills, NC12Reidsville, NC: 11 countReidsville, NC11Rocky Mount, NC: 10 countRocky Mount, NC10Tarboro, NC: 10 countTarboro, NC10Eden, NC: 8 countEden, NC8Shelby, NC: 8 countShelby, NC8Lumberton, NC: 7 countLumberton, NC7Spring Lake, NC: 0 countSpring Lake, NC0Raleigh, NC: 4,211 countRaleigh, NC4,211Durham, NC: 3,230 countDurham, NC3,230Apex, NC: 2,241 countApex, NC2,241Cary, NC: 1,562 countCary, NC1,562Winston-Salem, NC: 1,335 countWinston-Salem, NC1,335Greensboro, NC: 846 countGreensboro, NC846Leland, NC: 803 countLeland, NC803Wake Forest, NC: 764 countWake Forest, NC764Chapel Hill, NC: 718 countChapel Hill, NC718Greenville, NC: 714 countGreenville, NC714Clayton, NC: 624 countClayton, NC624Fuquay-Varina, NC: 602 countFuquay-Varina, NC602Morrisville, NC: 600 countMorrisville, NC600Garner, NC: 542 countGarner, NC542Holly Springs, NC: 512 countHolly Springs, NC512Asheville, NC: 404 countAsheville, NC404Wendell, NC: 361 countWendell, NC361Waxhaw, NC: 355 countWaxhaw, NC355Burlington, NC: 352 countBurlington, NC352Gastonia, NC: 339 countGastonia, NC339Mebane, NC: 284 countMebane, NC284Graham, NC: 275 countGraham, NC275High Point, NC: 267 countHigh Point, NC267Knightdale, NC: 260 countKnightdale, NC260Fayetteville, NC: 241 countFayetteville, NC241Rolesville, NC: 180 countRolesville, NC180Southern Pines, NC: 162 countSouthern Pines, NC162Carrboro, NC: 154 countCarrboro, NC154Zebulon, NC: 148 countZebulon, NC148New Bern, NC: 145 countNew Bern, NC145Boone, NC: 137 countBoone, NC137Wilson, NC: 128 countWilson, NC128Pinehurst, NC: 125 countPinehurst, NC125Aberdeen, NC: 118 countAberdeen, NC118Asheboro, NC: 102 countAsheboro, NC102Monroe, NC: 88 countMonroe, NC88Sanford, NC: 74 countSanford, NC74Morganton, NC: 70 countMorganton, NC70Kinston, NC: 62 countKinston, NC62Elizabeth City, NC: 61 countElizabeth City, NC61Winterville, NC: 60 countWinterville, NC60Goldsboro, NC: 59 countGoldsboro, NC59Morehead City, NC: 53 countMorehead City, NC53Roanoke Rapids, NC: 48 countRoanoke Rapids, NC48Kings Mountain, NC: 33 countKings Mountain, NC33Thomasville, NC: 32 countThomasville, NC32Lexington, NC: 28 countLexington, NC28Jacksonville, NC: 23 countJacksonville, NC23Waynesville, NC: 23 countWaynesville, NC23Kernersville, NC: 18 countKernersville, NC18Havelock, NC: 14 countHavelock, NC14Hope Mills, NC: 12 countHope Mills, NC12Reidsville, NC: 11 countReidsville, NC11Rocky Mount, NC: 10 countRocky Mount, NC10Tarboro, NC: 10 countTarboro, NC10Eden, NC: 8 countEden, NC8Shelby, NC: 8 countShelby, NC8Lumberton, NC: 7 countLumberton, NC7Spring Lake, NC: 0 countSpring Lake, NC0
count. Source: Invokely calculation with data from U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCities2018
count		Change on 2017
1Raleigh, NC Estimated4,211+30.9%
2Durham, NC Estimated3,230+9%
3Apex, NC Estimated2,241+61.5%
4Cary, NC Estimated1,562+19.5%
5Winston-Salem, NC Estimated1,335-31.9%
6Greensboro, NC Estimated846-47.4%
7Leland, NC Estimated803-23.2%
8Wake Forest, NC Estimated764-6.5%
9Chapel Hill, NC Estimated718+31%
10Greenville, NC Estimated714-14.9%
11Clayton, NC Estimated624+10.6%
12Fuquay-Varina, NC Estimated602-3.8%
13Morrisville, NC Estimated600+41.8%
14Garner, NC Estimated542-34.9%
15Holly Springs, NC Estimated512-19.1%
16Asheville, NC Estimated404+6%
17Wendell, NC Estimated361+37.8%
18Waxhaw, NC Estimated355+5.7%
19Burlington, NC Estimated352+23.1%
20Gastonia, NC Estimated339+7.6%
21Mebane, NC Estimated284+6%
22Graham, NC Estimated275+113.2%
23High Point, NC Estimated267-13.6%
24Knightdale, NC Estimated260-63.3%
25Fayetteville, NC Estimated241-23%
26Rolesville, NC Estimated180-1.6%
27Southern Pines, NC Estimated162+11.7%
28Carrboro, NC Estimated154+316.2%
29Zebulon, NC Estimated148-11.9%
30New Bern, NC Estimated145+54.3%
31Boone, NC Estimated137+21.2%
32Wilson, NC Estimated128-53.5%
33Pinehurst, NC Estimated125-17.8%
34Aberdeen, NC Estimated118+110.7%
35Asheboro, NC Estimated102+64.5%
36Monroe, NC Estimated88+4.8%
37Sanford, NC Estimated74-32.7%
38Morganton, NC Estimated70+48.9%
39Kinston, NC Estimated62+3,000%
40Elizabeth City, NC Estimated61+10.9%
41Winterville, NC Estimated60-43.9%
42Goldsboro, NC Estimated59+25.5%
43Morehead City, NC Estimated53-76.4%
44Roanoke Rapids, NC Estimated48+1,100%
45Kings Mountain, NC Estimated33-45.9%
46Thomasville, NC Estimated32-20%
47Lexington, NC Estimated28-78.6%
48Jacksonville, NC Estimated23-68.9%
48Waynesville, NC Estimated23-8%
50Kernersville, NC Estimated18+12.5%
51Havelock, NC Estimated14+7.7%
52Hope Mills, NC Estimated12+140%
53Reidsville, NC Estimated11-92.9%
54Rocky Mount, NC Estimated10+25%
54Tarboro, NC Estimated10-63%
56Eden, NC Estimated8+33.3%
56Shelby, NC Estimated80%
58Lumberton, NC Estimated70%
59Spring Lake, NC Estimated0-100%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of new privately owned housing units authorized by building permits in the year or month, from the US Census Bureau Building Permits Survey. Annual totals for the nation, states and counties; monthly counts for the nation and states.

Counts housing units, not buildings, starts, completions or sales. Monthly counts are not seasonally adjusted and do not add up exactly to the annual total, which includes later corrections; the national seasonally adjusted annual rate in the monthly New Residential Construction release is a different measure.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the cities are compared on one definition. 1 cities with data in other periods have no value for 2018 and are left out rather than filled from another source. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/South%20Region/so2018a.txt. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Census Bureau. (2019). Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation (Cities in North Carolina by housing units authorized by building permits, 2018) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/South%20Region/so2018a.txt

MLA 9

Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation, Cities in North Carolina by housing units authorized by building permits, 2018. U.S. Census Bureau, 20 June 2019, https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/South%20Region/so2018a.txt. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/building-permit-housing-units/north-carolina-cities?period=2018. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2019. Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. Cities in North Carolina by housing units authorized by building permits, 2018. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/South%20Region/so2018a.txt. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/building-permit-housing-units/north-carolina-cities?period=2018.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2019) Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation, Cities in North Carolina by housing units authorized by building permits, 2018 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/South%20Region/so2018a.txt, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/building-permit-housing-units/north-carolina-cities?period=2018 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_cities_in_north_carolina_2018,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation: Cities in North Carolina by housing units authorized by building permits, 2018}},
  year = {2019},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/South%20Region/so2018a.txt},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/building-permit-housing-units/north-carolina-cities?period=2018. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/South\%20Region/so2018a.txt. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation: Cities in North Carolina by housing units authorized by building permits, 2018
PY  - 2019
DA  - 2019/06/20
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/South%20Region/so2018a.txt
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/building-permit-housing-units/north-carolina-cities?period=2018
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/building-permit-housing-units/north-carolina-cities?period=2018.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/South%20Region/so2018a.txt. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

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

Raleigh, NC, with 4,211 in 2018, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

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

Spring Lake, NC, with 0 in 2018.

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 estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. Retrieved 2026-10-12. 1 cities have no value for 2018 and are not ranked.

Housing units authorized by building permits: other rankings

Cities in North Carolina: more rankings