Residential Construction in Second-Home Areas

For the second quarter of 2024, the HBGI examined the sub-category of construction in second-home areas. A “second-home area” is a county in which the share of second homes is greater than 10.3% of the county’s total housing stock (these counties fall within the 75th and above percentile of the second home stock share distribution). There are 788 counties that are considered a second-home area based on this definition.

Single-Family Construction in Second-Home Areas

For single-family construction, the market share for second-home areas was at 17.5%, down slightly from a peak of 18.3% in the first quarter of 2023. The market share has grown considerably over the past nine years, as it stood at 13.2% in 2015.

The growth in construction has been stronger in second-home areas when compared to non-second-home areas. Between the 2015 and the second quarter of 2024 the average growth in single-family construction has been 9.1% for second-home areas, compared to the 5.1% for non-second-home areas.

Multifamily Construction in Second-Home Areas

The multifamily sector tells a similar — yet smaller — story. The market share of multifamily construction in second-home areas reached a new high in the second quarter of 2024, at 8.6%. This is up from 2015 when the market share was 5.5%. However, multifamily construction growth has slowed, declining 11.8%, which follows the national trend. Growth for multifamily construction in second-home areas had peaked at 53.1% in the third quarter of 2022.

Further analysis is available in this Eye On Housing article.