{"id":1966,"date":"2026-08-18T14:11:09","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T21:11:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wallawallatrends.org\/newsletter\/?page_id=1966"},"modified":"2026-08-18T14:11:09","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T21:11:09","slug":"aug26_main1","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/wallawallatrends.org\/newsletter\/aug26_main1\/","title":{"rendered":"Annual residential building permitted units in 2025 were the lowest since pandemic year 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"
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by Dr. Patrick Jones<\/strong><\/p>

The expansion of housing units typically\u00a0brings with it\u00a0many benefits for residents or would-be residents. First, an expansion of total opportunities to find suitable shelter, whether a single-family residence or an apartment. Second, an expansion of new housing stock, for those who prize newness\u00a0in dwellings. Third,\u00a0a likely expansion\u00a0of the types of housing offerings, by size and location.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

The expansion of housing supply also holds benefits for the local economy. Depending on\u00a0type\u00a0of home, new supply brings more \u201cworkforce\u201d housing to the market. Then there are direct and indirect economic benefits, such as greater local employment (assuming the builders and staff are local), and retail spending. In addition, local governments see their property tax base expand and reap their share of\u00a0augmented sales tax revenue.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Of course, this depiction of benefits depends on a\u00a0supply\u00a0expansion that\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0overreach and lead to the excesses of 2006 and 2007. How has Walla Walla\u2019s building recently fared?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

First, a note about last year. The Census reports that 164 units were\u00a0permitted.\u00a0In contrast to the\u00a0immediately\u00a0preceding years, almost none of the permitted units were in multi-family dwellings.\u00a0And this is the lowest number since\u00a0pandemic\u00a0year 2020, when 154 units were\u00a0permitted.\u00a0Permitted\u00a0housing units hit a recent peak in 2023, at 275, with the number in 2021 not too far behind. (The years with the highest number of permitted units, however, were 2003, 2004 and 2006, as the graph reveals.)<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

A word about the \u201cintensity\u201d of building permits in the County, that is, the rate\u00a0per 1,000 people, here excluding the Penitentiary\u00a0population.\u00a0Historically,\u00a0Walla Walla simply\u00a0hasn\u2019t\u00a0built residences\u00a0at the same rate as in the U.S. or Washington state.\u00a0For four years, the rate of permitted units\u00a0per 1,000 outpaced the U.S., but residential construction here has never surpassed the population-based rate in the state, as this indicator clearly shows. This is\u00a0likely a\u00a0consequence of the\u00a0relatively high\u00a0number of students in the county as well\u00a0as the\u00a0relatively high\u00a0presence of older adults here (see\u00a0this\u00a0Trends\u00a0<\/span>indicator<\/span><\/a>\u00a0for age distribution).\u00a0These age groups typically are not in the market for homes.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Why\u00a0the\u00a0drop off\u00a0last year? It\u00a0has\u00a0likely to do with recent population growth. Between 2020 and 2025, the non-institutionalized population of\u00a0Walla Walla County\u00a0climbed\u00a0by 1,864.\u00a0Over the same interval,\u00a0the number of permitted units\u00a0rose\u00a0by\u00a0865. If we use the\u00a0current\u00a0estimate by Census of the average number of people in a household in the Walla Walla\u00a0metro area of 2.4\u00a0(see this\u00a0<\/span>Trends indicator<\/span><\/a>), this\u00a0implies\u00a0that\u00a0the additional units in the county\u2019s housing stock have\u00a0been able to accommodate 2,076 people.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

That capacity\u00a0expansion\u00a0represents\u00a0200 more people than\u00a0joined\u00a0the county population over that period. Builders may know\u00a0of the supply overhand from\u00a0official numbers, or more likely, from the time it has recently taken to sell\/rent homes\/apartments.\u00a0Consequently, 2025\u2019s permit results\u00a0are likely to\u00a0represent\u00a0a\u00a0course\u00a0correction by residential construction firms.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

With\u00a0tepid\u00a0population so far in 2026, it seems\u00a0likely that\u00a0permitted\u00a0units this year will be the same or slightly lower than last year.<\/span><\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div> <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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