A new report from Dodge Data & Analytics states that residential and commercial builders in Central Florida pulled permits valued at $3.5 billion between January and June of this year, a 52.2 percent jump compared with the $2.3 billion for the same period year. Commercial construction (including office, retail, hotels, warehouses, schools, medical facilities, religious institutions) accounted for $1.1 billion of the total, double the figure from a year ago. Residential construction values for the first six months were up 33.3 percent, from $1.8 billion last year to $2.4 billion this year.
Central Florida’s economy is heavily dependent on new residential construction for jobs, both directly during construction and indirectly through the services and companies new residents help generate.
