Houston building permits fall 31 percent



Continue clicking to see the buildings that shaped the Houston skyline. An apartment building under construction at 1699 Hermann Drive across from Hermann Park.

Continue clicking to see the buildings that shaped the Houston skyline. An apartment building under construction at 1699 Hermann Drive across from Hermann Park. Photo: Katherine Feser Photo: Katherine Feser Image 1 of / 50 Caption Close Houston building permits fall 31 percent 1 / 50 Back to Gallery

Building permits awarded in January by the city of Houston fell 31 percent, with declines in both commercial and residential sectors, according to a report from the Greater Houston Partnership based on city permit data.

January saw $400 million worth of permit activity compared with $580 million last year, according to the report. The 12-month total fell 7.3 percent to $8 billion at the end of January.

The change chronicled: See the buildings that shaped the Houston skyline

Multifamily building permits saw the steepest drop, declining 94 percent to $3 million. The slowdown was expected as there are more units under construction than there likely will be demand for.

Across the area, there are close to 30,000 apartment units under construction, but only 4,380 are needed based on job projections, the partnership said. As a rule of thumb, every five new jobs creates demand for one apartment, and the partnership's 2016 employment forecast is for 21,900 new jobs.

Click through the slideshow above to see the buildings that shaped the Houston skyline.