Permits for construction of new housing in the Chicago area increased 7 percent in June over a year earlier, according to Bell Federal Savings’ Survey of Building.
For the first half of 1993, the number of permits issued rose 8.5 percent over the first six months of 1992, the survey found.
In June, the number of permits for single-family homes rose by 4 percent, and for multifamily units, up 29 percent.
Single-family home permits in the month hit 2,086, compared with 2,010 in 1992. The City of Chicago reported a 46 percent decrease, to 28 from 52. But permits for homes rose 18.5 percent in the suburbs, to 1,893 from 1,597. In unincorporated areas, the number of permits dropped 54 percent, to 165 from 361.
The seven-county area issued permits for 439 multifamily units in June, up 29 percent from 340 in June last year. The number of permits for multifamily housing increased 41 percent in Chicago, to 79 units from 56 a year ago; rose almost 31 percent in the suburbs, to 348 from 266 to 348; and dropped 33 percent in the unincorporated areas, to 12 from 18.
“If the present trend continues for the remainder of the year, permits for housing in the Chicago metropolitan area will reach the highest level since 1988,” said Robert Rowen, president and chief executive of Bell Federal.
“Obviously, low interest rates are a major factor for this upswing for housing. Interest rates are lower now than any time since the 1960s,” he added.
For the first half of 1993, the total number of housing permits rose to 12,562 from 11,575 last year.
The number of single-family permits increased 7.5 percent to 10,413 from 9,684 in the first half of 1992, while multifamily permits were up almost 14 percent, to 2,149 from 1,891.
Housing permit volume is normally higher in the last half of the year, so Bell Federal estimates the total for 1993 will be 30,000 units, compared with 24,712 in 1992.
Naperville was the suburban housing leader in the first six months, with a total of 588 permits. Other suburbs in the top 10 were Aurora, 399 permits; Bolingbrook, 383; Lake in the Hills, 373; Joliet, 371; Bartlett, 338; Orland Park, 311; Schaumburg, 295; Grayslake, 291; and Round Lake Beach, 286.
The Survey of Building covers Cook, Du Page, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will Counties in Illinois and Lake County, Ind.
Total building permit values for all types of construction-residential, commercial, industrial-totaled $584.1 million in June, an increase of 13 percent from $517.1 million in 1992.
