Texas Construction Intelligence: Permit Demand Across 221 Counties
Real building-permit demand across all 221 Texas counties — volume, momentum, and the Construction Demand Index, sourced from the U.S. Census Building Permits Survey and FRED.
Which Texas counties rank highest in this list?
As of April 2026, Texas's 221 counties authorized 16,689 residential building permits (U.S. Census Building Permits Survey). The highest-volume markets were Harris, Tarrant, Collin. PermitMap scores every county with its Construction Demand Index, updated monthly.
Rankings — April 2026
| # | County | Permits | MoM | YoY | Demand Index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Harris County · TX | 2,260 | +0% | +3.3% | 72 |
| 2 | Tarrant County · TX | 1,425 | -6.3% | -26.2% | 39 |
| 3 | Collin County · TX | 1,376 | -28.4% | +1.4% | 41 |
| 4 | Montgomery County · TX | 1,209 | +2.2% | +2.8% | 54 |
| 5 | Denton County · TX | 1,043 | +46.9% | -2.8% | 62 |
| 6 | Fort Bend County · TX | 859 | -3.4% | +3.9% | 45 |
| 7 | Dallas County · TX | 793 | +81.1% | -0.2% | 59 |
| 8 | Travis County · TX | 579 | -25.1% | -11.4% | 22 |
| 9 | Hidalgo County · TX | 554 | -0.9% | +0.1% | 39 |
| 10 | Lubbock County · TX | 461 | +172.8% | +29.4% | 68 |
| 11 | Hays County · TX | 426 | +10.9% | -15% | 35 |
| 12 | Bexar County · TX | 405 | -6.5% | -24.1% | 22 |
| 13 | Williamson County · TX | 348 | -25.8% | -34.2% | 8 |
| 14 | Comal County · TX | 301 | +106.2% | -49.7% | 35 |
| 15 | Ellis County · TX | 284 | +32.7% | +23.8% | 62 |
| 16 | Brazoria County · TX | 279 | +2.2% | -29.3% | 21 |
| 17 | Bell County · TX | 238 | +3.5% | -12.5% | 30 |
| 18 | Cameron County · TX | 232 | +28.9% | +15.1% | 56 |
| 19 | Galveston County · TX | 213 | -11.2% | -19.8% | 18 |
| 20 | El Paso County · TX | 209 | +14.2% | -11.6% | 35 |
| 21 | Johnson County · TX | 196 | +0.5% | +7.9% | 38 |
| 22 | Potter County · TX | 189 | +67.3% | -28.7% | 34 |
| 23 | Brazos County · TX | 176 | -75.2% | +5.4% | 21 |
| 24 | Rockwall County · TX | 155 | +22% | -12.1% | 38 |
| 25 | Guadalupe County · TX | 142 | -34.3% | -17.7% | 9 |
Showing the top 25 of 221 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 Texas, Nov 2025 → April 2026.
| Nov | Dec | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr |
| 12,711 | 15,565 | 13,384 | 18,534 | 16,955 | 16,689 |
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: 83% of authorized units (vs multifamily 5+).
Frequently asked questions
Which Texas counties rank highest in this list?
As of April 2026, Texas's 221 counties authorized 16,689 residential building permits (U.S. Census Building Permits Survey). The highest-volume markets were Harris, Tarrant, Collin. PermitMap scores every county with its Construction Demand Index, updated monthly.
What is the top market right now?
Harris County (April 2026) leads this ranking with 2,260 permits authorized and a Construction Demand Index of 72/100 (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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