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Permit-issuing place

Caldwell County Unincorporated Area

Caldwell County · Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC · North Carolina

Permits through August 2026Yearly permits since 1995Caldwell County index 1986–2025
FHFA house price index for Caldwell County, which contains Caldwell County Unincorporated Area, 1986 to 2025Recession 1990–91Recession 2001Recession 2007–09Recession 2020010020030040050019901995200020052010201520202025United States2025: 392
Caldwell County (100 = first year)United States, rebased to the same startNBER recession
House prices are indexed by county, not by city: this is Caldwell County'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.

In the 12 months to August 2026, building permits in Caldwell County Unincorporated Area, North Carolina, covered 454 housing units (+1.6% year on year); the place lies in Caldwell County.

310 of those units were single-family houses (68%), 0 were in two- to four-unit buildings and 144 in buildings of five or more units.

Since 1995 the place has authorised 7,891 units, with the busiest year 2025 (498 units). Caldwell County's FHFA house price index rose +107.6% over the ten years to 2025.

454units permitted, 12 months to August 2026+1.6% on the previous 12 months
310single-family units68% of the total
144units in 5+ unit buildings32% of the total
—units per 1,000 residentsCaldwell County 5.6 · North Carolina 7.8

Permits by month and structure type

Housing units authorised in Caldwell County Unincorporated Area by month, latest 24 months0100200Sep 2024: 19 units (19 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Sep 2024Oct 2024: 17 units (17 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Nov 2024: 18 units (18 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Dec 2024: 18 units (18 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Dec 2024Jan 2025: 33 units (33 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Feb 2025: 20 units (20 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Mar 2025: 18 units (18 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Mar 2025Apr 2025: 78 units (78 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)May 2025: 66 units (66 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Jun 2025: 67 units (67 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Jun 2025Jul 2025: 67 units (65 single-family, 2 in multi-unit buildings)Aug 2025: 26 units (26 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Sep 2025: 49 units (49 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Sep 2025Oct 2025: 28 units (28 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Nov 2025: 20 units (20 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Dec 2025: 26 units (26 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Dec 2025Jan 2026: 26 units (26 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Feb 2026: 20 units (20 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Mar 2026: 29 units (29 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Mar 2026Apr 2026: 24 units (24 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)May 2026: 27 units (27 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Jun 2026: 162 units (18 single-family, 144 in multi-unit buildings)Jun 2026Jul 2026: 21 units (21 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Aug 2026: 22 units (22 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)

Housing units authorised in Caldwell County Unincorporated Area by month, latest 24 monthssingle-family2+ unit buildings

Units, 12 months to August 2026Caldwell County Unincorporated AreaCaldwell CountyNorth CarolinaUnited States
All housing units45445587,8531,418,086
Single-family (1 unit)310 (68%)311 (68%)61,266 (70%)888,241 (63%)
2 units001,29234,814
3–4 units0032117,298
5 or more units144 (32%)144 (32%)24,974 (28%)477,733 (34%)
Units per 1,000 residents—5.67.84.1
Change on previous 12 months+1.6%+1.6%+2.0%−0.1%

Permits by year since 1995

Housing units authorised in Caldwell County Unincorporated Area by year, 1995–202502004006001995: 286 units (282 single-family, 4 in multi-unit buildings)19951996: 317 units (315 single-family, 2 in multi-unit buildings)1997: 250 units (250 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)1998: 321 units (321 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)1999: 444 units (444 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2000: 442 units (400 single-family, 42 in multi-unit buildings)20002001: 403 units (403 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2002: 414 units (414 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2003: 340 units (340 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2004: 394 units (392 single-family, 2 in multi-unit buildings)2005: 362 units (336 single-family, 26 in multi-unit buildings)20052006: 319 units (319 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2007: 314 units (310 single-family, 4 in multi-unit buildings)2008: 203 units (203 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2009: 124 units (124 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2010: 132 units (92 single-family, 40 in multi-unit buildings)20102011: 118 units (76 single-family, 42 in multi-unit buildings)2012: 64 units (64 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2013: 84 units (82 single-family, 2 in multi-unit buildings)2014: 164 units (100 single-family, 64 in multi-unit buildings)2015: 168 units (118 single-family, 50 in multi-unit buildings)20152016: 93 units (91 single-family, 2 in multi-unit buildings)2017: 108 units (108 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2018: 212 units (146 single-family, 66 in multi-unit buildings)2019: 73 units (13 single-family, 60 in multi-unit buildings)2020: 231 units (159 single-family, 72 in multi-unit buildings)20202021: 262 units (192 single-family, 70 in multi-unit buildings)2022: 281 units (277 single-family, 4 in multi-unit buildings)2023: 246 units (246 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2024: 224 units (224 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2025: 498 units (496 single-family, 2 in multi-unit buildings)2025

Housing units authorised in Caldwell County Unincorporated Area by year, 1995–2025single-family2+ unit buildings

7,891 units since 1995; the busiest year was 2025. Annual figures include units imputed for months a place did not report.

Home prices in Caldwell County

FHFA's index for Caldwell County rose +107.6% over the ten years to 2025 (+7.6% a year) and +3.4% in the latest year, against +106.6% and +2.5% for North Carolina. 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 Caldwell County Unincorporated Area, NC?

454 housing units were authorised by building permits in the 12 months to August 2026, against 447 in the previous 12 months.

What kind of housing is being permitted in Caldwell County Unincorporated Area?

310 single-family units, 0 in two-unit buildings, 0 in three- and four-unit buildings and 144 in buildings of five or more units.

How does Caldwell County Unincorporated Area compare with its county and state?

No population estimate is attached to this permit-issuing area, so a per-resident rate is not shown; Caldwell County runs at 5.6 units per 1,000 residents and North Carolina at 7.8.

How have home prices moved in Caldwell County?

FHFA's index for Caldwell County rose +107.6% over the ten years to 2025 and +3.4% 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 084000); 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.