New construction had a very good year in the Atlanta region in 2013, with the sector experiencing across the board increases.

In the 22-county Atlanta region, housing starts increased 67 percent from 2012 to 2013, according to a report from Metrostudy.

At 13,862 housing starts, 2013 was a huge year for Atlanta’s new construction sector, and Metrostudy anticipates that 2014’s housing starts will grow at least 25 percent over 2013.

2013 a Banner Year for Atlanta New Construction

In addition to overall housing starts, Metrostudy reported the following findings:

• The northern portions of Atlanta (the areas above I-20) saw the majority of housing activity, with an 80 percent market for housing starts in 2013.
• Still, every county saw increases in housing starts; even the exurban areas south of I-20, which had been hotbeds for foreclosures and falling property values, saw housing starts rise by 97 percent.
• Some fourth quarter numbers were particularly dramatic; in Henry County, for instance, starts were up 245 percent from 2012’s fourth quarter, while in Paulding, they were up a jaw-dropping 436 percent.

Atlanta to See “Huge Gains” in New Construction

Eugene James, the regional director for Metrostudy, said some of the Atlanta area’s numbers were stratospheric.

“Coweta, Henry, Douglas, even Clayton county all had new construction starts to increase over 100 percent from a year ago,” James said. “That’s because starts were nearly non-existent last year in the exurban market areas.”

And those trends, James explained, are likely to continue into 2014.

“With housing demand outpacing the low supply of new and resale homes in the region I think we will have another year of huge gains in housing construction activity, probably by at least 25 percent above the 2013 figures,” he said.