Building permits issued for new home construction were down in 2010 in Navajo County, according to figures provided by the Navajo County Public Works Department.
In 2010, a total of 71 “new start dwelling” permits were issued by Navajo County. In 2009, the total was 79.
August was the busiest month for building permits, with a 10 issued in August 2010, compared to nine in 2009. December was a slow month, however, with only one permit issued in 2010, compared to five in 2009.
June and July ranked second and third, respectively, for the number of permits issued on 2010. A total of nine permits were issued in June and eight in July. Those same months were among the busiest in 2009, with eight issued in June and 10 in July.
The busiest permit month in 2009 was October, when 12 permits were issued for new residences, followed by July and then May, with nine permits issued. Not nearly as many permits were issued in October or May of 2010, with a total of seven in October and six in May.
Other months varied greatly in the number of permits issued, including three in January 2010, compared to five in 2009; two in February of both 2010 and 2009; five in March 2010 and six in March 2009; seven in April 2010 and eight in April 2009; six in September 2010 and only one in September 2009; seven in November 2010 and four in November 2009.
The slowdown in building permits for new homes in the county is a continuing trend since the start of the recession. Statewide, the decline in new home building has had a significant effect on the economy.
Due to a large number of vacant homes, many due to foreclosures, the home building market is not expected to recover quickly. Economists have noted that they also do not expect the state’s economy to recover until the housing market improves.
Navajo County has a higher percentage of vacant homes than the statewide average, according to the 2010 Census. The vacancy rate in Navajo County is 37.4 percent. For Arizona, the total is 16.3 percent.
Neighboring counties have similar vacancy rates, but lower than those in Navajo County. The percent of vacant housing units in Apache County is 30 percent, in Coconino County, 26.2 percent, and in Gila County, 32.7 percent.
Totals for building permits issued by the county by area were not available, but according to the census, Holbrook has a 13 percent housing unit vacancy rate; Winslow, 13.3 percent; Snowflake, 16.2 percent; and Taylor, 11.6 percent.
Vacancy rates in Show Low and Pinetop-Lakeside are high, according to the census, however, the area also has a number of vacation and second homes. The vacancy rate in Show Low is 56.6 percent and in Pinetop-Lakeside it is 50.5 percent.
