Area homebuilding permits hit August decline

Permit filings for home construction in central Indiana fell 4 percent in August, the second straight month of declining activity in the homebuilding market.

Homebuilders filed 446 single-family building permits in the nine-county metro area last month, the Builders Association of Greater Indianapolis said Tuesday. That’s down from 463 that were filed in August 2013.

It’s also a 6-percent drop from the 475 permits that were filed in July.

Permit filings are still up for 2014, but only slightly. Through the first eight months of the year, 3,594 permits have been filed in central Indiana, an increase of 0.8 percent over the same period of 2013.

Hamilton County led the area in permit filings in August, with 130. But that was 26 percent fewer than the 176 filed last August. It’s also the slowest month the county has seen since January, when 128 permits were filed.

Marion County saw a 20-percent year-over-year decrease in permits in August, from 79 to 63.

Hendricks County experienced a 12-percent increase in filings, to 86. Johnson County saw an 11-percent rise, to 69.

Filings rose significantly in Hancock County, from 18 to 33, and in Madison County, from zero to eight.

Boone County saw filings increase by one, to 35.

Filings rose from seven to 13 in Morgan County and dropped from 10 to nine in Shelby County.