September permits generated $35,333 in fees
According to Putnam County Mayor Randy Porter, September had 38 permits for $9.4 million in construction, with 23 of those being for new single-family homes in the county.
That is up from 28 permits worth $6.5 million in September 2024. Only 17 of those were for single-family homes.
“September permits generated $35,333 in fees, which operate the Building Codes Department,” according to Porter. “Remember, these are numbers for Putnam County that do not include any of the four cities.”
According to reports, the national trend shows mixed activity with a tightening residential market. But there was a 7% year-over-year increase in planned construction investment, according to Construct Connect’s Expansion Index.
“Mega projects” nationally saw the most concentrated growth with expansion driven by expanded military and commercial sectors, while educational, residential, medical and community sectors contracted.
What were the primary factors influencing the market?
Interest rates:
Restrictive interest rates have constrained demand (especially in the residential market). With that, developers have held off on new housing starts (primarily for multifamily projects).
Project concentration:
Only 13 states experienced expansion, according to reports.
Contracting sectors include:
- educational
- residential
- medical
- community
Industry trends:
Automated and prefabricated construction methods faced shortages in September.
Here are the local numbers for prior years as a comparison:
| 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | ||||
| Permits | Total Amount | Permits | Total Amount | Permits | Total Amount | |
| January | 20 | 4,990,900 | 22 | 3,886,300 | 24 | 5,493,600 |
| February | 37 | 6,653,700 | 34 | 8,245,155 | 38 | 10,202,716 |
| March | 34 | 8,705,474 | 25 | 7,056,360 | 54 | 16,349,883 |
| April | 35 | 6,924,500 | 42 | 8,903,850 | 33 | 8,311,168 |
| May | 40 | 7,075,300 | 33 | 7,391,000 | 30 | 5,877,860 |
| June | 36 | 5,922,400 | 36 | 9,476,800 | 43 | 9,989,300 |
| July | 36 | 8,456,000 | 40 | 7,740,700 | 27 | 7,238,000 |
| August | 38 | 7,570,900 | 28 | 3,905,000 | 36 | 6,365,900 |
| September | 37 | 6,171,496 | 28 | 6,478,045 | 38 | 9,415,037 |
| October | 47 | 9,429,590 | 36 | 14,411,700 | ||
| November | 23 | 4,487,600 | 30 | 5,612,310 | ||
| December | 25 | 5,829,000 | 22 | 5,397,000 | ||
| TOTALS | 408 | 82,216,860 | 376 | 88,504,220 | 323 | 79,243,464 |
Photo by Samuel Cruz on Unsplash.
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