Permits & units · Building Permits Survey
Structure (building)
The building a permit covers; BPS classifies each by how many units it holds.
A structure is the building itself. BPS sorts every permit into one of four structure categories by the number of housing units the building contains: 1-unit, 2-unit, 3-to-4 unit, and 5-or-more unit.
This breakdown is what lets you see whether a place is growing through detached single-family homes or through larger multifamily buildings.
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Structure (building) — FAQ
What is structure (building) in building permits data?+
The building a permit covers; BPS classifies each by how many units it holds. A structure is the building itself. BPS sorts every permit into one of four structure categories by the number of housing units the building contains: 1-unit, 2-unit, 3-to-4 unit, and 5-or-more unit.
Why does structure (building) matter?+
This breakdown is what lets you see whether a place is growing through detached single-family homes or through larger multifamily buildings.
Where does this building-permit data come from?+
All figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau's Building Permits Survey (BPS), a monthly census of permit-issuing jurisdictions. PUMSdata is an independent product that makes it easy to map and compare, and is not affiliated with the Census Bureau.