D-FW Ranks Second in the Country for Construction Starts
North Texas construction starts fell again in September. But the Dallas-Fort Worth area is still the country’s second-largest building market. In September, North Texas nonresidential construction activity was down 28% year-over-year, and residential starts were down 7%.
Through the first nine months of 2020, D-FW construction starts totaled $17.5 billion — up a scant 1% from the first three quarters of last year, according to a new report by Dodge Data & Analytics. Only New York City had more building activity with $24.9 billion in starts. Houston ranked third behind New York and D-FW with $14.8 billion in building activity. That’s down 17% from starts in the first nine months of 2019.
Nationwide year-to-date construction starts were down 14% through September, according to Dodge Data.
“That construction starts took a significant step back in September is disappointing but also not surprising,” Richard Branch, chief economist for Dodge Data & Analytics, said in a statement. "The economic recovery has lost momentum and is showing strain since support provided to consumers and businesses from expanded unemployment insurance benefits and the Paycheck Protection Program have expired.
“The worsening budget crisis for state and local areas has also slowed growth in public project starts, particularly in the face of a somewhat uncertain outlook for federal infrastructure spending programs,” he said. “The road to recovery will continue to be uneven and fraught with potholes until a vaccine is developed and widely adopted across the U.S...”
