10,348
permits filed in Q3 2026
1,760
new homes permitted
$458,000
median declared construction cost, new single-family home
24%
of permits were electrical
New Home Activity by Town and Builder
The quarter saw 1,760 permits for new homes, including 895 single‑family homes, 672 townhomes and other attached units, and 193 permits without a housing type designation. The median construction cost declared on the 774 single‑family permits that list a value was $458,000; the median for townhomes was $342,000. Those cost figures come from permits in Cary, Durham, Raleigh and Wake County only; Garner does not publish a construction value. New‑home permits were most concentrated in Durham with 451, followed by Raleigh with 427, Wendell with 323, Knightdale with 209, Wake Forest with 81 and Zebulon with 68. The builders appearing on the most new‑home permits were Lennar with 215 permits, PulteGroup with 141, D.R. Horton with 96, Mungo Homes with 73 and Meritage Homes with 69.
Permit Volume by Trade
Electrical work led the trade‑specific permits with 2,494 filings, representing 24% of all permits. New construction permits numbered 1,945 and accounted for 19% of the total. Mechanical (HVAC) permits were 993 (10%), alterations and remodels were 809 (8%), decks and porches were 691 (7%) and other residential work totaled 565 (5%). The high count of electrical permits indicates strong demand for electricians across both new‑home and remodel projects, while the 1,945 new‑construction permits show continued activity in building new structures beyond the single‑family and townhome segments.
Busiest Municipalities and ZIP Codes for Suppliers
Permit activity by municipality placed Raleigh at the top with 3,059 permits, Cary followed with 2,393, Durham with 1,279, Wendell with 636, Wake Forest with 557 and Knightdale with 537. Suppliers targeting these towns can expect the highest volume of work. The busiest ZIP codes for all permit types were 27519 with 812 permits, 27513 with 712, 27591 with 592, 27587 with 547 and 27545 with 525. Contractors and material vendors focusing on these ZIP areas will encounter the densest concentration of jobs across the Triangle for the quarter.
Largest Commercial Projects
Five commercial projects accounted for the highest declared values. Project No. 1 was a $159 million tenant upfit for Origin 3 at 4773 Mccrimmon Pkwy, Morrisville, covering 956,620 sq ft and built by Brasfield Gorrie. Project No. 2 was a $75.2 million building floorplan fit‑out for manufacturing operations at 2000 Science Dr #Ph 1, Morrisville, 202,000 sq ft, contracted by Arcadis APM Group, Inc. Project No. 3 was a $37.1 million upgrade to the Williams Water Treatment Plant basin improvements at 1500 Hillandale Rd, Durham, 27705, executed by Pc Construction Company. Project No. 4 was a $35.5 million QC Lab scope for an existing commercial building at 2000 Science Dr, Morrisville, 60,600 sq ft, also built by Arcadis APM Group, Inc. Project No. 5 was a $34.6 million Origin 2 building permit at 440 Spark View Dr, Morrisville, 208,359 sq ft, with Brasfield & Gorrie as the contractor. These projects together represent the largest single‑site investments in the quarter and drive demand for specialty trades such as HVAC, electrical, and interior fit‑out crews.
What to do with this
- Target electrical and HVAC subcontractors should prioritize Raleigh (ZIP 27519) and Cary where the bulk of electrical permits are concentrated.
- Builders Lennar, PulteGroup and D.R. Horton dominate new‑home work; suppliers can seek contracts through these firms in Durham and Raleigh.
- Suppliers of commercial‑fit‑out materials should watch the Morrisville projects, especially the $159 million Origin 3 upfit and the $75.2 million Science Dr manufacturing fit‑out.
- Contractors looking for large‑scale work should monitor the five listed commercial projects for subcontracting opportunities, noting the contractors Brasfield Gorrie, Arcadis APM Group and Pc Construction Company.
How these numbers are counted: each permit is counted in the month it was filed (or issued, where an office doesn't publish a filing date), from the public records of each permit office. A declared value is the construction cost the builder files with the permit: it leaves out land, site work and the builder's margin, so it runs well below a sale price, and not every office publishes one.