What Percentage of the Housing Market Are Teardowns?
As undeveloped lots become scarcer and more expensive, many home owners and builders are looking to already developed lots to build new homes.
In 2024, 6.9% of new single-family detached homes were teardowns (existing homes torn down and rebuilt), and another 20.1% were built on infill lots in older neighborhoods, according to the latest  conducted by .
While the share of infill and teardown construction is growing, homes built in new residential developments still dominate, accounting for 57.5% of all new homes built last year. Another 15.6% of new homes were built in no residential development or neighborhood.
There is notable regional variation in infill and teardown home construction rates. In areas of the country with a very mature housing market or geographical features limiting usable lots, infill and teardown rates are higher.
In New England, the majority of new homes (53%) are teardowns or on infill lots. The Mid-Atlantic also has an elevated rate (40.4%). But in the more open Mountain West, the rate is only 15.3%, and in the Texas region, the rate is 15.9%.
Paul Emrath, Æðµã´«Ã½ vice president for survey and housing policy research, provides additional details in .