Data / Rankings / Single-family housing units authorized by building permits / Cities in Washington

Cities in Washington by single-family housing units authorized by building permits

Ridgefield, WA had the highest single-family housing units authorized by building permits of 91 cities in 2020, at 670. Snoqualmie, WA had the lowest, at 0. The median was 69. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest670Ridgefield, WA
Lowest0Snoqualmie, WA
Median6991 cities

Top 40 cities, 2020

Ridgefield, WA: 670 countRidgefield, WA670Pasco, WA: 525 countPasco, WA525Vancouver, WA: 517 countVancouver, WA517Kirkland, WA: 419 countKirkland, WA419Richland, WA: 386 countRichland, WA386Marysville, WA: 361 countMarysville, WA361Lake Stevens, WA: 349 countLake Stevens, WA349Camas, WA: 337 countCamas, WA337Spokane, WA: 332 countSpokane, WA332Kent, WA: 313 countKent, WA313Kennewick, WA: 298 countKennewick, WA298Seattle, WA: 247 countSeattle, WA247Tacoma, WA: 241 countTacoma, WA241West Richland, WA: 228 countWest Richland, WA228Spokane Valley, WA: 217 countSpokane Valley, WA217Bellevue, WA: 214 countBellevue, WA214Maple Valley, WA: 210 countMaple Valley, WA210Battle Ground, WA: 179 countBattle Ground, WA179Bremerton, WA: 176 countBremerton, WA176Bothell, WA: 172 countBothell, WA172Sammamish, WA: 172 countSammamish, WA172Enumclaw, WA: 158 countEnumclaw, WA158Renton, WA: 158 countRenton, WA158Liberty Lake, WA: 152 countLiberty Lake, WA152Shoreline, WA: 152 countShoreline, WA152Yakima, WA: 144 countYakima, WA144Tumwater, WA: 139 countTumwater, WA139Edgewood, WA: 138 countEdgewood, WA138Lacey, WA: 135 countLacey, WA135Ferndale, WA: 131 countFerndale, WA131Moses Lake, WA: 124 countMoses Lake, WA124Bellingham, WA: 122 countBellingham, WA122Covington, WA: 118 countCovington, WA118Port Orchard, WA: 114 countPort Orchard, WA114Gig Harbor, WA: 112 countGig Harbor, WA112Puyallup, WA: 102 countPuyallup, WA102Bonney Lake, WA: 92 countBonney Lake, WA92Mercer Island, WA: 90 countMercer Island, WA90Bainbridge Island, WA: 86 countBainbridge Island, WA86Mount Vernon, WA: 86 countMount Vernon, WA86Ridgefield, WA: 670 countRidgefield, WA670Pasco, WA: 525 countPasco, WA525Vancouver, WA: 517 countVancouver, WA517Kirkland, WA: 419 countKirkland, WA419Richland, WA: 386 countRichland, WA386Marysville, WA: 361 countMarysville, WA361Lake Stevens, WA: 349 countLake Stevens, WA349Camas, WA: 337 countCamas, WA337Spokane, WA: 332 countSpokane, WA332Kent, WA: 313 countKent, WA313Kennewick, WA: 298 countKennewick, WA298Seattle, WA: 247 countSeattle, WA247Tacoma, WA: 241 countTacoma, WA241West Richland, WA: 228 countWest Richland, WA228Spokane Valley, WA: 217 countSpokane Valley, WA217Bellevue, WA: 214 countBellevue, WA214Maple Valley, WA: 210 countMaple Valley, WA210Battle Ground, WA: 179 countBattle Ground, WA179Bremerton, WA: 176 countBremerton, WA176Bothell, WA: 172 countBothell, WA172Sammamish, WA: 172 countSammamish, WA172Enumclaw, WA: 158 countEnumclaw, WA158Renton, WA: 158 countRenton, WA158Liberty Lake, WA: 152 countLiberty Lake, WA152Shoreline, WA: 152 countShoreline, WA152Yakima, WA: 144 countYakima, WA144Tumwater, WA: 139 countTumwater, WA139Edgewood, WA: 138 countEdgewood, WA138Lacey, WA: 135 countLacey, WA135Ferndale, WA: 131 countFerndale, WA131Moses Lake, WA: 124 countMoses Lake, WA124Bellingham, WA: 122 countBellingham, WA122Covington, WA: 118 countCovington, WA118Port Orchard, WA: 114 countPort Orchard, WA114Gig Harbor, WA: 112 countGig Harbor, WA112Puyallup, WA: 102 countPuyallup, WA102Bonney Lake, WA: 92 countBonney Lake, WA92Mercer Island, WA: 90 countMercer Island, WA90Bainbridge Island, WA: 86 countBainbridge Island, WA86Mount Vernon, WA: 86 countMount Vernon, WA86
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units in 1-unit structures authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCities2020
count		Change on 2019
1Ridgefield, WA Estimated670+84.1%
2Pasco, WA Estimated525+10.1%
3Vancouver, WA Estimated517+72.3%
4Kirkland, WA Estimated419+44%
5Richland, WA Estimated386+4.3%
6Marysville, WA Estimated361-22.2%
7Lake Stevens, WA Estimated349+11.5%
8Camas, WA Estimated337-11.1%
9Spokane, WA Estimated332+19%
10Kent, WA Estimated313+1%
11Kennewick, WA Estimated298-13.6%
12Seattle, WA Estimated247-51.3%
13Tacoma, WA Estimated241+48.8%
14West Richland, WA Estimated228+68.9%
15Spokane Valley, WA Estimated217+50.7%
16Bellevue, WA Estimated214+9.7%
17Maple Valley, WA Estimated210+15.4%
18Battle Ground, WA Estimated179-13.5%
19Bremerton, WA Estimated176-4.9%
20Bothell, WA Estimated172+3%
20Sammamish, WA Estimated172-1.7%
22Enumclaw, WA Estimated158-11.7%
22Renton, WA Estimated158+51.9%
24Liberty Lake, WA Estimated152-10.6%
24Shoreline, WA Estimated152+40.7%
26Yakima, WA Estimated144-5.9%
27Tumwater, WA Estimated139+85.3%
28Edgewood, WA Estimated138+46.8%
29Lacey, WA Estimated135-44.4%
30Ferndale, WA Estimated131+19.1%
31Moses Lake, WA Estimated124-6.1%
32Bellingham, WA Estimated122-35.1%
33Covington, WA Estimated118+18%
34Port Orchard, WA Estimated114+16.3%
35Gig Harbor, WA Estimated112+27.3%
36Puyallup, WA Estimated102+43.7%
37Bonney Lake, WA Estimated92-5.2%
38Mercer Island, WA Estimated90+7.1%
39Bainbridge Island, WA Estimated86-8.5%
39Mount Vernon, WA Estimated86+2.4%
41Monroe, WA Estimated85-28.6%
42Auburn, WA Estimated83+260.9%
43Redmond, WA Estimated82-30.5%
44Lynden, WA Estimated73-26.3%
45Airway Heights, WA Estimated69+32.7%
45Shelton, WA Estimated69+16.9%
47Anacortes, WA Estimated62-6.1%
48Lakewood, WA Estimated58+87.1%
48Washougal, WA Estimated58+7.4%
50Lynnwood, WA Estimated55+83.3%
51Issaquah, WA Estimated51-20.3%
52Des Moines, WA Estimated49-10.9%
53Sumner, WA Estimated43+138.9%
54Pullman, WA Estimated41-59.4%
55Ellensburg, WA Estimated40+11.1%
55Olympia, WA Estimated40+37.9%
57Kenmore, WA Estimated39-7.1%
58Sedro-Woolley, WA Estimated38+8.6%
59Federal Way, WA Estimated35-47%
60Walla Walla, WA Estimated33-42.1%
61Edmonds, WA Estimated32+28%
62Port Townsend, WA Estimated31-39.2%
63Port Angeles, WA Estimated29-35.6%
64Centralia, WA Estimated28-17.6%
64Everett, WA Estimated28-75%
66Wenatchee, WA Estimated27-32.5%
67Grandview, WA Estimated26+160%
67Tukwila, WA Estimated26+30%
69Burien, WA Estimated25-26.5%
69Mountlake Terrace, WA Estimated25-16.7%
71Poulsbo, WA Estimated23-51.1%
71Sunnyside, WA Estimated23-65.2%
73University Place, WA Estimated20-70.1%
74Aberdeen, WA Estimated17+750%
75SeaTac, WA Estimated16+60%
75Woodinville, WA Estimated16-73.8%
77Longview, WA Estimated13-13.3%
78Cheney, WA Estimated12-77.4%
78Kelso, WA Estimated12+33.3%
80Fife, WA Estimated11-52.2%
80Snohomish, WA Estimated11+10%
80Yelm, WA Estimated11-72.5%
83Mill Creek, WA Estimated10n/a
84Arlington, WA Estimated9-10%
85Lake Forest Park, WA Estimated80%
86Newcastle, WA Estimated6-85.4%
87East Wenatchee, WA Estimated4+300%
87Oak Harbor, WA Estimated4-55.6%
89Burlington, WA Estimated2-95%
90Mukilteo, WA Estimated1-80%
91Snoqualmie, WA Estimated0-100%

Other periods

About this ranking

Annual number of new privately owned housing units in 1-unit structures (detached and attached single-family homes) authorized by building permits, from the US Census Bureau Building Permits Survey.

Part of building_permit_units, which also counts units in buildings with two or more units. Counts housing units, not starts, completions or sales.

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

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units in 1-unit structures authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/West%20Region/we2020a.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. (2021). Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units in 1-unit structures authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation (Cities in Washington by single-family housing units authorized by building permits, 2020) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/West%20Region/we2020a.txt

MLA 9

Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units in 1-unit structures authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation, Cities in Washington by single-family housing units authorized by building permits, 2020. U.S. Census Bureau, 3 May 2021, https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/West%20Region/we2020a.txt. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/single-family-building-permits/washington-cities?period=2020. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2021. Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units in 1-unit structures authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. Cities in Washington by single-family housing units authorized by building permits, 2020. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/West%20Region/we2020a.txt. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/single-family-building-permits/washington-cities?period=2020.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2021) Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units in 1-unit structures authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation, Cities in Washington by single-family housing units authorized by building permits, 2020 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/West%20Region/we2020a.txt, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/single-family-building-permits/washington-cities?period=2020 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_cities_in_washington_by_2020,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units in 1-unit structures authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation: Cities in Washington by single-family housing units authorized by building permits, 2020}},
  year = {2021},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/West%20Region/we2020a.txt},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/single-family-building-permits/washington-cities?period=2020. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units in 1-unit structures authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/West\%20Region/we2020a.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 in 1-unit structures authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation: Cities in Washington by single-family housing units authorized by building permits, 2020
PY  - 2021
DA  - 2021/05/03
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/West%20Region/we2020a.txt
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/single-family-building-permits/washington-cities?period=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/single-family-building-permits/washington-cities?period=2020.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units in 1-unit structures authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/West%20Region/we2020a.txt. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

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

Ridgefield, WA, with 670 in 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

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

Snoqualmie, WA, with 0 in 2020.

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 in 1-unit structures authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Single-family housing units authorized by building permits: other rankings

Cities in Washington: more rankings