The amount of time it takes to build a single-family home is increasing. In 2023, the average time to complete a single-family house was 10.1 months, with 1.5 months spent obtaining authorization and 8.6 months spent on construction, according to the National Association of Home Builders’ Eye On Housing blog. Since 2015, the time from permit to completion has increased by nearly three months, primarily due to stricter regulations, supply-chain issues, and a shortage of skilled labor. Before 2017, construction usually began within the same month as authorization, but that's changing for all kinds of projects. Built-for-sale homes and contractor-built homes on owner’s land required around 1.5 months to start, while built-for-rent and custom builds took slightly longer at 1.6 months.
Among all single-family houses completed in 2023, homes built for sale required the shortest amount of time, 8.9 months from obtaining building permits to completion. Meanwhile, homes built by owners (custom builds) required the longest time, 15.2 months. Homes built by hired contractors took about 12.1 months, and homes built-for-rent took about 12.2 months from authorization to completion.
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