NWA building permits rise as construction costs ease

Residential building permit activity for single-family homes in Northwest Arkansas’ four largest cities is ahead of last year’s pace by double digits through the first two months of 2023.

According to permit data from each city collected by the Northwest Arkansas Business Journal, 259 residential building permits were issued through February in Bentonville, Fayetteville, Rogers and Springdale. That’s up 12.6% from the same period in 2022 (230 permits).

The permits through February this year have a combined value of $81.96 million, down 3.7% compared with $85.11 million last year.

Officials in Fayetteville issued the most permits through February with 99 ($22.98 million), up 52% from the previous year of 65 ($24.24 million).

The report from the other cities through the first two months was:

• Rogers: 71 permits, $24.51 million (2023); 45 permits, $17.53 million (2022).
• Bentonville: 64 permits, $27.55 million (2023); 93 permits, $34.63 million (2022).
• Springdale: 25 permits, $6.92 million (2023); 27 permits, $8.71 million (2022).

In Bella Vista, through February this year, city officials issued 82 permits valued at $30.06 million. That’s up from 79 permits and $25.97 million in the same period of 2022.

Officials in Centerton issued 58 permits valued at $15.48 million through February this year. That’s up from 52 permits in the same two-month period in 2022. The valuation was not available.