According to data from the Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction (SOC), 62.5 percent of all homes started in 2018 were built within a community or homeowner’s association. A total of 543,000 homes with community associations were started in 2018, compared to 508,000 in 2017. The Census Bureau defines community or homeowner’s associations as “formal legal entities created to maintain common areas of a development and to enforce private deed restrictions; these organizations are usually created when the development is built, and membership is mandatory.”

The share of all new homes built within a community or homeowner’s association continue to increase over the years. In 2009, the share was 47.6 percent, and in 2010, 48.0 percent. Since 2011, more than 50 percent of all homes have been built within a community or homeowner’s association. In 2018, the share was 62.5 percent, the highest since records began in 2009.

When analyzed by the 9 census divisions, the highest share was in the Mountain Division, where 82.4 percent of new homes were in such communities. In the Middle Atlantic Division, on the other hand, the share was only 28.6 percent.

In the West South-Central Division, the share was 70.2 percent, while in the East South-Central Division, it was 34.6 percent. In the West North-Central and East North-Central Divisions, 45.8 percent and 51.0 percent of new homes started in 2018 were within a community or home owner’s association, respectively.

In the South Atlantic Division, 69.7 percent of new homes in 2018 had a community or home owner’s association, followed by the Pacific Division at 56.0 percent, and the New England Division at 36.9 percent.

Tags: economics, eye on the economy, home building, housing, single-family