Emerging Construction Markets: The Next Hot Counties for Contractors
Up-and-coming markets: mid-size counties (a moderate permit base) posting the strongest month-over-month growth — early signals before they reach the top of the volume rankings.
Which counties rank highest in this list?
As of April 2026, emerging construction markets — mid-size counties posting the strongest month-over-month permit growth before topping the volume charts — include Taylor, Burleson, Broward (U.S. Census BPS). Updated monthly.
Rankings — April 2026
| # | County | Permits | MoM | YoY | Demand Index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taylor County · FL | 33 | +371.4% | +18.4% | 55 |
| 2 | Burleson County · TX | 21 | +320% | -26.2% | 32 |
| 3 | Broward County · FL | 396 | +224.6% | +62.5% | 71 |
| 4 | Coryell County · TX | 38 | +137.5% | +30.6% | 61 |
| 5 | Tom Green County · TX | 44 | +131.6% | +43.8% | 61 |
| 6 | Alachua County · FL | 242 | +130.5% | +90.6% | 67 |
| 7 | Martin County · FL | 97 | +106.4% | +30.8% | 63 |
| 8 | Comal County · TX | 301 | +106.2% | -49.7% | 35 |
| 9 | Suwannee County · FL | 29 | +93.3% | +0% | 46 |
| 10 | Jefferson County · TX | 37 | +85% | -4.2% | 44 |
| 11 | Gulf County · FL | 64 | +77.8% | +0% | 47 |
| 12 | Franklin County · FL | 24 | +71.4% | -0.9% | 45 |
| 13 | Potter County · TX | 189 | +67.3% | -28.7% | 34 |
| 14 | Taylor County · TX | 138 | +60.5% | +104.8% | 62 |
| 15 | Hunt County · TX | 35 | +59.1% | -35.2% | 31 |
| 16 | Wise County · TX | 53 | +55.9% | -13.2% | 39 |
| 17 | Citrus County · FL | 174 | +51.3% | -14% | 43 |
| 18 | Levy County · FL | 23 | +43.8% | +22.6% | 57 |
| 19 | Kendall County · TX | 67 | +39.6% | -37.3% | 31 |
| 20 | Leon County · FL | 153 | +34.2% | +16% | 57 |
| 21 | Liberty County · TX | 81 | +32.8% | -23.5% | 35 |
| 22 | Ellis County · TX | 284 | +32.7% | +23.8% | 62 |
| 23 | Cameron County · TX | 232 | +28.9% | +15.1% | 56 |
| 24 | San Patricio County · TX | 55 | +27.9% | -8.3% | 41 |
| 25 | Flagler County · FL | 213 | +23.1% | -0.1% | 48 |
Showing the top 25 of 81 ranked counties. Permits and month-over-month: U.S. Census Building Permits Survey (April 2026). Year-over-year: FRED. Demand Index is a modeled 0–100 composite. Dashes indicate a source did not report for that county this period.
Six-month trajectory
Total permits authorized across all tracked counties, Nov 2025 → April 2026.
| Nov | Dec | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr |
| 22,363 | 28,785 | 24,516 | 30,614 | 29,404 | 31,285 |
Market concentration
How concentrated demand is at the top of the ranking.
of permits in this ranking come from the top 5 counties.
Single-family share: 77% of authorized units (vs multifamily 5+).
Frequently asked questions
Which counties rank highest in this list?
As of April 2026, emerging construction markets — mid-size counties posting the strongest month-over-month permit growth before topping the volume charts — include Taylor, Burleson, Broward (U.S. Census BPS). Updated monthly.
What is the top market right now?
Taylor County (April 2026) leads this ranking with 33 permits authorized and a Construction Demand Index of 55/100 (modeled).
How often is this updated?
Every month, when new U.S. Census Building Permits Survey data is released. Rankings, charts, and figures regenerate automatically from the same dataset that powers PermitMap's county pages and monthly intelligence editions.
Methodology & sources
Permit counts and month-over-month change come from the U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (period 2026-04); year-over-year from FRED. The Construction Demand Index is a modeled 0–100 composite of volume, momentum, and year-over-year trend, labeled as modeled wherever it appears. This collection regenerates each month from the same dataset that powers PermitMap's county pages and monthly editions.
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