September 19, 2002

Low Interest Rates Fuel Construction Boom in North Dakota Cities

New housing units authorized for construction in North Dakota increased 26.3 percent from 2,128 units in 2000 to 2,687 in 2001 according to the recent Economic Brief released from the North Dakota State Data Center at North Dakota State University in Fargo.

"Interest rates are at historical lows which is fueling the surge in housing construction. In turn, the boom in housing construction is expanding the economy of the state. Unfortunately, most of the housing is being built in the larger cities of the state," said Richard Rathge, director of the State Data Center. Total value of these units increased 26.6 percent to $240,815,000 in 2001, up from $190,197,000 in 2000.

Florida, Texas and California captured nearly 30 percent of all new housing units authorized for construction in the United States in 2001.

In 2001, single-family homes comprised the majority of new authorized housing in North Dakota (55 percent). The value per single-family home authorized for construction in North Dakota averaged $122,501 in 2001, making North Dakota 16th lowest in the nation. Nationally, the value of a new single-family home authorized for construction averaged $137,595. California reported the highest average value per single-family home at $188,642 and Mississippi the lowest at $101,346.

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Source: Richard Rathge, (701) 231-8621, richard_rathge@ndsu.nodak.edu
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 231-9629, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu

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