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Permit-issuing place

Swain County

Swain County · North Carolina

Permits through August 2026Yearly permits since 1995Swain County index 1998–2025
FHFA house price index for Swain County, which contains Swain County, 1998 to 2025Recession 2001Recession 2007–09Recession 20200100200300400200020052010201520202025United States2025: 305
Swain County (100 = first year)United States, rebased to the same startNBER recession
House prices are indexed by county, not by city: this is Swain 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.

Swain County, North Carolina (Swain County), authorised 82 housing units through building permits in the 12 months to August 2026, 0.0% on the previous 12 months.

79 of those units were single-family houses (96%), 3 were in two- to four-unit buildings and 0 in buildings of five or more units.

Since 1995 the place has authorised 3,033 units, with the busiest year 2006 (216 units). Swain County's FHFA house price index rose +98.8% over the ten years to 2025.

82units permitted, 12 months to August 20260.0% on the previous 12 months
79single-family units96% of the total
0units in 5+ unit buildings0% of the total
—units per 1,000 residentsSwain County 5.8 · North Carolina 7.8

Permits by month and structure type

Housing units authorised in Swain County by month, latest 24 months051015Sep 2024: 4 units (4 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Sep 2024Oct 2024: 7 units (7 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Nov 2024: 5 units (5 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Dec 2024: 7 units (3 single-family, 4 in multi-unit buildings)Dec 2024Jan 2025: 5 units (5 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Feb 2025: 3 units (3 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Mar 2025: 8 units (8 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Mar 2025Apr 2025: 11 units (11 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)May 2025: 10 units (8 single-family, 2 in multi-unit buildings)Jun 2025: 5 units (5 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Jun 2025Jul 2025: 9 units (5 single-family, 4 in multi-unit buildings)Aug 2025: 8 units (8 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Sep 2025: 6 units (6 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Sep 2025Oct 2025: 5 units (5 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Nov 2025: 5 units (5 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Dec 2025: 8 units (8 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Dec 2025Jan 2026: 4 units (4 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Feb 2026: 5 units (5 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Mar 2026: 6 units (6 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Mar 2026Apr 2026: 8 units (8 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)May 2026: 8 units (8 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Jun 2026: 11 units (8 single-family, 3 in multi-unit buildings)Jun 2026Jul 2026: 8 units (8 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)Aug 2026: 8 units (8 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)

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

Units, 12 months to August 2026Swain CountySwain CountyNorth CarolinaUnited States
All housing units828287,8531,418,086
Single-family (1 unit)79 (96%)79 (96%)61,266 (70%)888,241 (63%)
2 units001,29234,814
3–4 units3332117,298
5 or more units0 (0%)0 (0%)24,974 (28%)477,733 (34%)
Units per 1,000 residents—5.87.84.1
Change on previous 12 months0.0%0.0%+2.0%−0.1%

Permits by year since 1995

Housing units authorised in Swain County by year, 1995–202501002003001995: 71 units (69 single-family, 2 in multi-unit buildings)19951996: 92 units (90 single-family, 2 in multi-unit buildings)1997: 126 units (104 single-family, 22 in multi-unit buildings)1998: 115 units (115 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)1999: 98 units (94 single-family, 4 in multi-unit buildings)2000: 155 units (105 single-family, 50 in multi-unit buildings)20002001: 116 units (103 single-family, 13 in multi-unit buildings)2002: 135 units (121 single-family, 14 in multi-unit buildings)2003: 142 units (136 single-family, 6 in multi-unit buildings)2004: 148 units (136 single-family, 12 in multi-unit buildings)2005: 136 units (136 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)20052006: 216 units (216 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2007: 122 units (118 single-family, 4 in multi-unit buildings)2008: 74 units (70 single-family, 4 in multi-unit buildings)2009: 46 units (46 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2010: 46 units (46 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)20102011: 54 units (54 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2012: 38 units (38 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2013: 41 units (41 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2014: 50 units (50 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2015: 52 units (50 single-family, 2 in multi-unit buildings)20152016: 91 units (91 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2017: 56 units (56 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2018: 65 units (65 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2019: 77 units (77 single-family, 0 in multi-unit buildings)2020: 83 units (75 single-family, 8 in multi-unit buildings)20202021: 212 units (210 single-family, 2 in multi-unit buildings)2022: 116 units (106 single-family, 10 in multi-unit buildings)2023: 89 units (83 single-family, 6 in multi-unit buildings)2024: 77 units (73 single-family, 4 in multi-unit buildings)2025: 94 units (84 single-family, 10 in multi-unit buildings)2025

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

3,033 units since 1995; the busiest year was 2006. Annual figures include units imputed for months a place did not report.

Home prices in Swain County

FHFA's index for Swain County rose +98.8% over the ten years to 2025 (+7.1% a year) and +1.9% 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 Swain County, NC?

82 housing units were authorised by building permits in the 12 months to August 2026, against 82 in the previous 12 months.

What kind of housing is being permitted in Swain County?

79 single-family units, 0 in two-unit buildings, 3 in three- and four-unit buildings and 0 in buildings of five or more units.

How does Swain County compare with its county and state?

No population estimate is attached to this permit-issuing area, so a per-resident rate is not shown; Swain County runs at 5.8 units per 1,000 residents and North Carolina at 7.8.

How have home prices moved in Swain County?

FHFA's index for Swain County rose +98.8% over the ten years to 2025 and +1.9% 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 571000); 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.