How have contractor costs trended in your area? (Real permit data)
Pick a trade and a U.S. metro (or the national fixed panel) to see the real year-over-year median declared permit value, the % change across the window, and the sample size behind each year — every figure computed live from real public building permits in the ProFix Cost Trends series. This tracks declared permit value over time, a public-record proxy — not a consumer price index.
Last reviewed Next data refresh: Q3 2026- First → latest median
- $9,613 → $15,000
- Compound annual rate
- +6.6%/yr
- Years
- 2018–2025
- Coverage
- 3 metros
The median declared permit value rose from $9,613 in 2018 to $15,000 in 2025 across a fixed panel of 3 metros — +56% (6.6%/yr).
| Year | Median permit value | Permits (n) |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | $9,613 | 1,840 |
| 2019 | $10,000 | 3,750 |
| 2020 | $10,700 | 3,680 |
| 2021 | $11,600 | 3,519 |
| 2022 | $13,155 | 3,605 |
| 2023 | $15,000 | 3,298 |
| 2024 | $16,000 | 3,587 |
| 2025 | $15,000 | 3,482 |
Based on real declared permit values for roofer work in United States.
These are real declared permit values over time, not a price index. A permit's declared construction value is a self-reported public-record figure a city uses to assess fees — a public-record proxy that moves with both price AND the mix of projects filed each year, so read it as a directional signal, not a consumer price index. Metro series follow one fixed jurisdiction and the national series pools a fixed panel of metros present in every year, so neither trend can be an artifact of the dataset changing shape; every year shown clears a 30-permit minimum.
How to read this trend
The headline figure is the change in the median declared construction value on real building permits for that trade — the public-record number a city uses to assess fees, tracked year over year. It is a strong but imperfect proxy for what people pay: a declared-value median moves with both price and the mix of projects filed each year, so read it as a directional signal, not a consumer price index. To keep it honest, a metro series follows one fixed jurisdiction and the national series pools a fixed panel of metros present in every year, so neither line can be manufactured by the dataset changing shape; every year shown clears a 30-permit minimum, and the table beneath the chart shows that count. When your metro and trade don't qualify, we show the national fixed-panel series and label it, rather than invent a local trend.
Hand the question to your preferred assistant — it will use ProFix Directory's open MCP server and llms.txt as context.