Permits through August 2026Yearly permits since 1995Orleans Parish index 1975–2025
Orleans Parish (100 = first year)United States, rebased to the same startNBER recessionPeak before the latest year value
House prices are indexed by county, not by city: this is Orleans Parish's FHFA index, with the national index rebased to the same start.
Census Bureau notes: building permit figures cover new privately owned housing units authorised by permit-issuing places; permits do not mean the units were started or completed, and places that report less often than monthly are imputed in monthly totals. FHFA notes: The FHFA HPI is a broad measure of the movement of single-family house prices. The FHFA HPI is a weighted, repeat-sales index, meaning that it measures average price changes in repeat sales or refinancings on the same properties.
New Orleans, Louisiana (Orleans Parish), authorised 796 housing units through building permits in the 12 months to August 2026, −11.2% on the previous 12 months.
202 of those units were single-family houses (25%), 264 were in two- to four-unit buildings and 330 in buildings of five or more units. That is 2.2 units per 1,000 residents, close to the county's 2.2 and below the state's 3.0.
Since 1995 the place has authorised 31,615 units, with the busiest year 2007 (3,246 units). Orleans Parish's FHFA house price index rose +29.5% over the ten years to 2025.
796units permitted, 12 months to August 2026−11.2% on the previous 12 months
202single-family units25% of the total
330units in 5+ unit buildings41% of the total
2.2units per 1,000 residentsOrleans Parish 2.2 · Louisiana 3.0
Permits by month and structure type
Housing units authorised in New Orleans by month, latest 24 monthssingle-family2+ unit buildings
Units, 12 months to August 2026
New Orleans
Orleans Parish
Louisiana
United States
All housing units
796
796
14,034
1,418,086
Single-family (1 unit)
202 (25%)
202 (25%)
11,806 (84%)
888,241 (63%)
2 units
246
246
476
34,814
3–4 units
18
18
31
17,298
5 or more units
330 (41%)
330 (41%)
1,721 (12%)
477,733 (34%)
Units per 1,000 residents
2.2
2.2
3.0
4.1
Change on previous 12 months
−11.2%
−11.2%
−1.1%
−0.1%
Permits by year since 1995
Housing units authorised in New Orleans by year, 1995–2025single-family2+ unit buildings
31,615 units since 1995; the busiest year was 2007. Annual figures include units imputed for months a place did not report.
Home prices in Orleans Parish
FHFA's index for Orleans Parish rose +29.5% over the ten years to 2025 (+2.6% a year) and −1.4% in the latest year, against +37.9% and +1.8% for Louisiana. Full county page: decade table, peak-to-low declines, every ZIP code and every permit-issuing place in the county.
Questions and answers
How many homes are being built in New Orleans, LA?
796 housing units were authorised by building permits in the 12 months to August 2026, against 896 in the previous 12 months.
What kind of housing is being permitted in New Orleans?
202 single-family units, 246 in two-unit buildings, 18 in three- and four-unit buildings and 330 in buildings of five or more units.
How does New Orleans compare with its county and state?
2.2 units per 1,000 residents in New Orleans, 2.2 in Orleans Parish and 3.0 in Louisiana.
How have home prices moved in Orleans Parish?
FHFA's index for Orleans Parish rose +29.5% over the ten years to 2025 and −1.4% in the latest year; the county page has the full series.
What does a permit count?
A housing unit authorised by a building permit for new privately owned residential construction, as reported to the Census Bureau Building Permits Survey by the permit-issuing office. Permits are not completions; some permitted units are never built, and places that report only annually are imputed in monthly figures.
Provenance
Permits: US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, place-level monthly and annual files through August 2026 (permit office 483000); county and state comparisons from the county and state files. Population: Census Bureau vintage 2025 estimates for incorporated places, matched on FIPS place code where the permit office is one. House price index: Federal Housing Finance Agency. Public domain. Corrections · Building Permits Survey.