Census Keeps Asking Officials About New Homes
Published Date: 11/20/2025
Notice
Summary
The Census Bureau is asking to keep using its Survey of Construction Questionnaire for Building Permit Officials, which helps track new home building. About 1,000 officials will spend just 15 minutes each answering questions, with a tiny cut in how many are surveyed. This extension keeps the data flowing smoothly without adding extra work or costs.
Analyzed Economic Effects
2 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 1 costs, 0 mixed.
Continued Housing Construction Data Feed
The Census Bureau is extending use of the Survey of Construction Questionnaire for Building Permit Officials so housing starts, sales, and completions data continue to be produced. These data produce two principal economic indicators (New Residential Construction and New Residential Sales) used by the Federal Reserve to evaluate interest rates and by the Bureau of Economic Analysis for GDP, and are used by HUD, NAHB, and private sector actors.
Small Time Burden on Permit Offices
About 1,000 State, local, or Tribal building-permit officials will be asked annually to complete an electronic SOC-QBPO questionnaire; each response averages 15 minutes (total burden hours 250). The collection is voluntary, the interview length will not change, and the sample size will receive only a minor downward adjustment.
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