Housing construction times vary drastically across US cities, new research reveals
A new working paper highlights significant disparities in permitting and construction timelines, with some cities taking years longer than others to approve and build housing.
New research indicates substantial differences in the time it takes to permit and construct housing across American cities. A working paper analyzing data from 60 U.S. cities reveals that the process can take vastly different durations, with some of the slowest cities taking nearly five years to complete a moderately sized apartment building, while faster cities can finish a similar project in under two years.
The study, authored by Leonardo D’Amico, Evan Soltas, and Audrey Wang, found that in high-cost cities like San Francisco, the application-to-completion timeline for an apartment building can approach five years. In contrast, a single-family home in Indianapolis can be built in about six months. Raleigh, North Carolina, offers another example of swiftness, with a 20-unit apartment building approved and built in roughly the same time it takes San Francisco to merely approve a permit.
These extended timelines have significant consequences, contributing to housing shortages, increasing construction costs as developers factor in lost time, and potentially discouraging development altogether, particularly for smaller builders. The researchers observed a correlation between longer permitting durations and higher housing prices and reduced housing production, although they note these are not definitively causal relationships.
The study, which is a working paper and has not yet undergone peer review, compiled over 1.1 million permits for 2.7 million housing units between 2000 and 2025. A notable finding is the overall increase in permitting times nationwide. Across the cities sampled, the estimated permitting time for a standardized multifamily building rose from 0.6 years in 2000 to 1.5 years in 2023. For single-family homes, the duration increased from 1.6 months to 4.9 months over the same period.
Permitting encompasses all steps after a developer submits an application, including reviews for compliance with building safety, energy codes, plumbing, zoning, and aesthetic standards. Developers often resubmit applications after revisions are requested. The researchers developed a methodology to estimate how long an identical, standardized project—a 2,800-square-foot detached single-family home or a 20-unit multifamily building—would take in different locations, controlling for factors like project size and neighborhood density.
While specific reasons for these delays are not definitively identified in the paper, potential contributing factors include increasingly restrictive zoning codes and more extensive building code requirements. In California, for example, environmental review processes like the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) can significantly extend timelines for certain housing projects. The researchers also suggest that cities with more burdensome permitting processes may also impose other regulations that slow down the actual construction phase.
Even controlling for the complexities of building in dense urban environments, the study highlights significant, persistent gaps between cities, suggesting that the differences are not simply an inevitable consequence of urban development. The findings suggest a nationwide trend toward slower housing approvals, raising questions about the efficiency and justification of current regulatory processes.