Highest Development Momentum
Cities ranked by the AreaProfile Growth signal
Where residential construction is substantial relative to population, and how the pace of it and the population and jobs around it are changing. A city can rank here while its permitting is shrinking if the rest of the signal is strong.
50 locations · Calculated September 26, 2026 · Data reflects 12 months ending July 2026 · Download CSV
The supporting columns show on a wider screen, and every column is in the CSV.
50 places, ranked nationally.
| # | City | Score | Permits yoy % | Permits per 1000 | Permits units 12mo | Shortlist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Columbia, SC | 90.3 | 106.6% | 22.9 | 3,198 | |
| 2 | Abilene, TX | 88.3 | 125.0% | 13.7 | 1,757 | |
| 3 | College Station, TX | 88.0 | 66.2% | 15.1 | 1,881 | |
| 4 | Broken Arrow, OK | 87.5 | 105.5% | 12.9 | 1,529 | |
| 5 | Bend, OR | 81.4 | 28.4% | 15.3 | 1,580 | |
| 6 | Odessa, TX | 80.1 | 32.3% | 10.3 | 1,191 | |
| 7 | Murfreesboro, TN | 80.1 | 8.8% | 9.2 | 1,489 | |
| 8 | Huntsville, AL | 79.2 | 87.4% | 9.5 | 2,108 | |
| 9 | Charleston, SC | 79.1 | 35.9% | 9.4 | 1,446 | |
| 10 | Salt Lake City, UT | 78.7 | 19.8% | 14.2 | 2,955 | |
| 11 | League City, TX | 78.6 | 17.8% | 8.7 | 1,012 | |
| 12 | Carmel, IN | 78.3 | 43.6% | 10.0 | 1,015 | |
| 13 | Fort Worth, TX | 78.3 | 4.0% | 11.3 | 10,867 | |
| 14 | Buckeye, AZ | 78.1 | -13.9% | 24.4 | 2,562 | |
| 15 | Allen, TX | 77.7 | -2.5% | 9.3 | 1,024 | |
| 16 | Pittsburgh, PA | 77.2 | 103.2% | 8.0 | 2,430 | |
| 17 | Menifee, CA | 77.1 | 65.9% | 6.2 | 687 | |
| 18 | Goodyear, AZ | 76.7 | -14.0% | 20.0 | 2,148 | |
| 19 | Jersey City, NJ | 76.5 | 39.1% | 9.0 | 2,657 | |
| 20 | Clarksville, TN | 76.3 | -12.4% | 11.3 | 2,002 | |
| 21 | McKinney, TX | 75.9 | -2.9% | 14.6 | 3,065 | |
| 22 | Meridian, ID | 75.6 | 6.7% | 11.3 | 1,475 | |
| 23 | Salem, OR | 75.4 | 67.7% | 6.6 | 1,177 | |
| 24 | McAllen, TX | 75.4 | -6.7% | 9.9 | 1,445 | |
| 25 | Olathe, KS | 75.3 | 104.7% | 7.5 | 1,081 | |
| 26 | Knoxville, TN | 75.3 | -9.9% | 8.9 | 1,738 | |
| 27 | Frisco, TX | 75.2 | -15.4% | 15.5 | 3,405 | |
| 28 | St. George, UT | 75.2 | -2.7% | 8.9 | 904 | |
| 29 | Yuma, AZ | 74.7 | 0.0% | 7.7 | 768 | |
| 30 | Syracuse, NY | 74.7 | 466.5% | 8.8 | 1,286 | |
| 31 | Gainesville, FL | 74.5 | 102.1% | 13.8 | 2,009 | |
| 32 | Lee's Summit, MO | 74.0 | -17.5% | 8.9 | 926 | |
| 33 | Greeley, CO | 73.7 | 255.4% | 10.7 | 1,187 | |
| 34 | Nampa, ID | 73.6 | -22.6% | 11.3 | 1,249 | |
| 35 | Sparks, NV | 73.4 | 27.9% | 9.7 | 1,067 | |
| 36 | Denton, TX | 73.3 | -14.9% | 17.1 | 2,619 | |
| 37 | Surprise, AZ | 73.3 | -34.3% | 15.7 | 2,428 | |
| 38 | Bellevue, WA | 73.0 | 200.5% | 11.6 | 1,767 | |
| 39 | West Jordan, UT | 72.7 | 121.6% | 7.4 | 860 | |
| 40 | Sioux Falls, SD | 72.6 | 3.5% | 10.7 | 2,159 | |
| 41 | North Las Vegas, NV | 72.4 | -17.4% | 6.3 | 1,762 | |
| 42 | Tacoma, WA | 72.4 | 155.4% | 5.7 | 1,267 | |
| 43 | Arlington, VA | 71.8 | 258.7% | 12.1 | 2,852 | |
| 44 | Overland Park, KS | 71.5 | 95.4% | 5.1 | 1,026 | |
| 45 | Rochester, MN | 71.3 | 156.3% | 9.9 | 1,215 | |
| 46 | Sandy Springs, GA | 71.0 | 1657.4% | 11.2 | 1,195 | |
| 47 | The Woodlands, TX | 70.9 | -16.7% | 17.2 | 11,755 | |
| 48 | Oklahoma City, OK | 70.8 | 1.4% | 6.7 | 4,666 | |
| 49 | Newark, NJ | 70.6 | -4.7% | 8.0 | 2,472 | |
| 50 | San Tan Valley, AZ | 70.5 | -19.8% | 15.1 | 7,102 |
Methodology
Cities are ranked by the AreaProfile Growth signal: permitted units per 1,000 residents over the trailing twelve months (30%), change against the prior twelve months (20%), change against three years earlier (15%), four-year population change (20%) and three-year employment growth (15%). Volume alone does not rank a city highly — pace relative to population and direction of travel both count.
What is excluded, and why
Cities under 100,000 residents, and cities for which the Census Building Permits Survey publishes no activity.
The top 50 of the 351 cities that meet these criteria are listed.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Local Area Unemployment Statistics (la)
- U.S. Census Bureau — Population Estimates Program (Vintage 2024)
- U.S. Census Bureau — Building Permits Survey (2026)
Full details of how signals and the Area Score are calculated are on the methodology page, and how rankings like this one are built and reviewed is on the editorial policy page.