Permits through August 2026Yearly permits since 1995Queens County index 1975–2025
Queens County (100 = first year)United States, rebased to the same startNBER recession
House prices are indexed by county, not by city: this is Queens 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.
Queens borough, New York (Queens County), authorised 6,729 housing units through building permits in the 12 months to August 2026, +85.4% on the previous 12 months.
54 of those units were single-family houses (1%), 405 were in two- to four-unit buildings and 6,270 in buildings of five or more units. That is 0.8 units per 1,000 residents, well below the county's 2.9 and well below the state's 2.4.
Since 1995 the place has authorised 137,898 units, with the busiest year 2015 (12,667 units). Queens County's FHFA house price index rose +67.1% over the ten years to 2025.
6,729units permitted, 12 months to August 2026+85.4% on the previous 12 months
54single-family units1% of the total
6,270units in 5+ unit buildings93% of the total
0.8units per 1,000 residentsQueens County 2.9 · New York 2.4
Permits by month and structure type
Housing units authorised in Queens borough by month, latest 24 monthssingle-family2+ unit buildings
Units, 12 months to August 2026
Queens borough
Queens County
New York
United States
All housing units
6,729
6,729
48,587
1,418,086
Single-family (1 unit)
54 (1%)
54 (1%)
10,167 (21%)
888,241 (63%)
2 units
296
296
1,322
34,814
3–4 units
109
109
783
17,298
5 or more units
6,270 (93%)
6,270 (93%)
36,315 (75%)
477,733 (34%)
Units per 1,000 residents
0.8
2.9
2.4
4.1
Change on previous 12 months
+85.4%
+85.4%
+38.8%
−0.1%
Permits by year since 1995
Housing units authorised in Queens borough by year, 1995–2025single-family2+ unit buildings
137,898 units since 1995; the busiest year was 2015. Annual figures include units imputed for months a place did not report.
Home prices in Queens County
FHFA's index for Queens County rose +67.1% over the ten years to 2025 (+5.3% a year) and +4.6% in the latest year, against +85.6% and +6.0% for New York. 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 Queens borough, NY?
6,729 housing units were authorised by building permits in the 12 months to August 2026, against 3,630 in the previous 12 months.
What kind of housing is being permitted in Queens borough?
54 single-family units, 296 in two-unit buildings, 109 in three- and four-unit buildings and 6,270 in buildings of five or more units.
How does Queens borough compare with its county and state?
0.8 units per 1,000 residents in Queens borough, 2.9 in Queens County and 2.4 in New York.
How have home prices moved in Queens County?
FHFA's index for Queens County rose +67.1% over the ten years to 2025 and +4.6% 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 605000); 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.