States › California › 2021
State, one year
California in 2021
Index change and building permits for the year, with every county.
In 2021 the FHFA house price index for California changed +12.7%, against +11.6% for the United States and +2.3% in 2020.
119,436 housing units were authorised by building permits in the state that year (65,890 single-family), +12.6% on 2020; the national total was 1,736,982.
Counties in 2021
Ranked by the county index change from 2020 to 2021 (FHFA annual county index). Permits are units authorised in 2021; per 1,000 uses the vintage 2025 population.
| County | Index change 2021 | Units permitted | Single-family | Per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Modoc County | +19.7% | 6 | 6 | 0.7 |
| Yuba County | +18.4% | 839 | 619 | 9.5 |
| Alpine County | +18.2% | 12 | 12 | 11.5 |
| San Joaquin County | +18.0% | 4,389 | 3,718 | 5.3 |
| San Bernardino County | +17.4% | 6,342 | 4,127 | 2.9 |
| Riverside County | +17.3% | 9,264 | 7,835 | 3.6 |
| Merced County | +17.2% | 1,017 | 1,017 | 3.4 |
| San Benito County | +16.3% | 485 | 485 | 6.9 |
| Stanislaus County | +16.2% | 811 | 667 | 1.5 |
| Del Norte County | +16.1% | 38 | 28 | 1.4 |
| Sacramento County | +16.0% | 6,235 | 4,156 | 3.9 |
| Madera County | +15.4% | 1,066 | 1,066 | 6.3 |
| Sierra County | +15.4% | 4 | 4 | 1.3 |
| El Dorado County | +15.2% | 669 | 669 | 3.5 |
| Kern County | +15.2% | 2,293 | 2,152 | 2.5 |
| Fresno County | +15.0% | 3,902 | 3,369 | 3.8 |
| Solano County | +15.0% | 1,378 | 1,141 | 3.0 |
| Tulare County | +14.9% | 1,510 | 1,300 | 3.1 |
| Mariposa County | +14.8% | 85 | 44 | 5.0 |
| Placer County | +14.7% | 4,301 | 4,073 | 9.7 |
| Siskiyou County | +14.6% | 97 | 47 | 2.3 |
| Sutter County | +14.6% | 142 | 106 | 1.4 |
| Kings County | +14.4% | 508 | 484 | 3.3 |
| Nevada County | +14.3% | 443 | 441 | 4.3 |
| San Diego County | +13.8% | 10,048 | 3,227 | 3.1 |
| Shasta County | +13.8% | 368 | 320 | 2.0 |
| Contra Costa County | +13.7% | 3,901 | 2,216 | 3.3 |
| Amador County | +13.5% | 141 | 141 | 3.4 |
| Monterey County | +13.5% | 882 | 503 | 2.0 |
| Calaveras County | +13.4% | 130 | 130 | 2.8 |
| Imperial County | +13.4% | 555 | 425 | 3.1 |
| Tuolumne County | +13.4% | 110 | 100 | 2.1 |
| Mono County | +13.0% | 81 | 81 | 6.5 |
| Lake County | +12.8% | 81 | 81 | 1.2 |
| Humboldt County | +12.7% | 371 | 189 | 2.8 |
| Tehama County | +12.7% | 226 | 190 | 3.5 |
| Yolo County | +12.3% | 1,229 | 492 | 5.5 |
| Santa Barbara County | +12.1% | 1,152 | 534 | 2.6 |
| Mendocino County | +12.0% | 187 | 187 | 2.1 |
| Colusa County | +11.6% | 37 | 37 | 1.7 |
| Los Angeles County | +11.5% | 23,284 | 7,657 | 2.4 |
| Glenn County | +11.4% | 19 | 19 | 0.7 |
| Ventura County | +11.4% | 1,477 | 686 | 1.8 |
| Napa County | +10.9% | 1,204 | 161 | 9.1 |
| San Luis Obispo County | +10.8% | 1,120 | 678 | 4.0 |
| Santa Cruz County | +10.6% | 598 | 304 | 2.3 |
| Butte County | +10.4% | 2,050 | 1,193 | 9.8 |
| Plumas County | +10.3% | 54 | 54 | 2.9 |
| Orange County | +9.9% | 7,867 | 3,433 | 2.5 |
| Alameda County | +9.8% | 5,025 | 1,368 | 3.1 |
| Inyo County | +9.4% | 6 | 4 | 0.3 |
| Sonoma County | +8.4% | 2,618 | 1,227 | 5.4 |
| Lassen County | +7.6% | 11 | 11 | 0.4 |
| Marin County | +6.8% | 265 | 149 | 1.0 |
| Trinity County | +5.3% | 44 | 44 | 2.8 |
| Santa Clara County | +4.9% | 4,044 | 1,915 | 2.1 |
| San Mateo County | +1.0% | 1,896 | 535 | 2.5 |
| San Francisco County | +0.1% | 2,519 | 33 | 3.0 |
Permits by year, 1995–2025
Housing units authorised in California by yearsingle-family2+ unit buildings
Source: Federal Housing Finance Agency annual state and county house price indexes (updated March 31, 2026); Census Bureau Building Permits Survey annual state and county files. Public domain. Methodology.