Wilmington and the Cape Fear region: building permits and new construction
6,650 building permits were filed in the last 12 months at the permit office we read in the Wilmington region, and 1,532 in the last 30 days. The most common work: residential (21%), commercial (11%) and new build (10%).
Across the region's counties, the Census counted 6,693 new single-family homes in the 12 months to August 2026, +2% on the year before, and 1,962 units in apartment and other multi-unit buildings.
- Permits, last 12 months
- 6,650
- Last 30 days
- 1,532
- New single-family homes
- 6,693
- 12 months, region's counties (Census)
- New single-family home
- $349K
- median construction cost on permits
Who issues building permits in the Wilmington region
New Hanover County's permit system covers the City of Wilmington, unincorporated New Hanover and Carolina Beach, so one feed carries most of the work in the county.
New Hanover files trade permits on their own, and its commercial electrical permits each repeat the whole building's declared value — so add up building permits, or count buildings, rather than summing every permit's value.
Our New Hanover records are complete from August 17, 2026. Before that the county's public data only carried part of its permits, so read longer-run counts with that in mind.
Brunswick County, where most of the region's new homes are going up, issues permits outside the towns that run their own: Leland, Southport, Oak Island and the beach towns. Its records list each permit's builder and the home's estimated value.
We don't read Pender County permits yet, or those of Leland, Southport, Oak Island and the Brunswick beach towns. The Census counts below cover all of Brunswick and Pender.
The permit offices we read
Each has its own page with monthly permits, what's being built, the busiest ZIP codes, the most active contractors and the latest filings.
New homes by county
Housing authorized by building permits in each county around the region, from the Census Bureau — including the counties we don't have a permit feed for yet.
| County | Single-family homes | vs. year before | Units in 2+ unit buildings | Avg. cost per home |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brunswick | 4,883 | +7% | 288 | $292K |
| New Hanover | 1,131 | −7% | 1,267 | $345K |
| Pender | 679 | −16% | 407 | $328K |
What's being permitted
Every permit filed in the last 12 months at the offices we read in the Wilmington region, by type of work.
- Residential1,424 (21%)
- Commercial752 (11%)
- New Build645 (10%)
- Electrical562 (8%)
- Alteration / Remodel486 (7%)
- Pool / Spa376 (6%)
- Deck / Porch337 (5%)
- Mechanical / HVAC296 (4%)
- Garage / Carport261 (4%)
- Demolition199 (3%)
Most active contractors in the Wilmington region
Ranked by permits pulled in the last 12 months. Builders, and the trades that file their own permits.
Recent permits
The latest filings. Permit Search has every one, with the contractor behind it.
| Address | Type | Value | Status | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 S FRONT COMPLEXWilmington 28401 | ElectricalNHC Commercial Electrical | $1.1M | Submitted | |
| 115 HORNE PLACE INDIVIDUALWilmington 28401 | ResidentialNHC Residential Trade Permit | — | Submitted | |
| 2215 CONTROL TOWER INDIVIDUALWilmington 28405 | Mechanical / HVACNHC Commercial Mechanical | $1.7M | Submitted | |
| 5816 MISTY MORNING INDIVIDUALWilmington 28409 | ResidentialNHC Residential Trade Permit | — | Submitted | |
| 4816 EXTON PARK COMPLEXCastle Hayne 28429 | ResidentialNHC Residential Trade Permit | — | Submitted | |
| 1293 WELLINGTON COMPLEXWilmington 28401 | CommercialNHC Commercial Trade Permit | — | Submitted | |
| 4512 OLEANDER COMPLEX #800Wilmington 28403 | Alteration / RemodelNHC Commercial Building Application | — | Submitted | |
| 2512 PRINCESS PLACE COMPLEX #DWilmington 28405 | CommercialNHC Commercial Trade Permit | — | Submitted | |
| 2701 CONSTITUTION COMPLEX #13PWilmington 28412 | CommercialNHC Commercial Trade Permit | — | Submitted | |
| 533 SOUNDSIDE INDIVIDUALWilmington 28412 | Garage / CarportNHC Residential Building | — | Submitted |
Reading on the Wilmington region
Wilmington and the Cape Fear region: common questions
- Who issues building permits in the Wilmington area?
- New Hanover County's permit system covers the City of Wilmington, unincorporated New Hanover and Carolina Beach, so one feed carries most of the work in the county.
- How many building permits were filed in the Wilmington region this year?
- 6,650 in the last 12 months, and 1,532 in the last 30 days, across the permit office we read: New Hanover County. That counts every permit type each office publishes, trade permits included, so one project can appear more than once.
- Where are the most new homes being built around Wilmington?
- Brunswick County: 4,883 new single-family homes authorized from September 2025 through August 2026, by the Census count. Across the 3 counties we track here it was 6,693, 2% more than the year before.
- What does a new home cost to build in the Wilmington region?
- The median construction cost declared on new single-family home permits in the offices we read was $349K over the last 12 months, and $245K for townhomes. That's the builder's declared cost of construction — it leaves out the land, site work and the builder's margin, so it runs well below a sale price.
More guides
Get the permits, not just the totals
Permit Search has every permit from the offices we read in the Wilmington region: the address, the contractor behind it and the permit history of each property. Or get new permits in your ZIP codes emailed to you.
Source: TarSignal, from North Carolina public building permit records, data through October 1, 2026. Refreshed nightly. Counts include every permit type a jurisdiction files — trade permits (electrical, plumbing, mechanical) as well as building permits — so one project can appear more than once. Values are what the applicant declared, where the jurisdiction records one. We keep improving how we collect each office's permits, so a count that steps up suddenly usually means more complete records, not more construction.