The U.S. Census Bureau recently released their final estimates of building permits for new, privately-owned residential construction in 2010. In the U.S., more than 600,000 permits were issued with a total valuation of $102 billion - a 3.7% increase from the 2009 total. Alaska's permits grew faster than the U.S., at 4.8%, but Alaska's total value of construction was just $205 million, or .2% of the U.S. total.
Single family residential construction permits were up in 2010, but permits for two or more units declined over 2009.
The census data for Alaska is likely to be understated because outside of Alaska's larger communities, building permits are not required for any dwelling of three units or less.
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