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Following a healthy year of activity in ’25, Greater Houston opened ’26 with a softer January for construction contracts, according to reports from Dodge Data & Analytics. Roughly $3.0 billion in contracts were awarded in January ’26, down nearly one-third from $4.3 billion in January ’25. The year-over-year decline partially reflects the unusually high baseline in January ’25, when local governments awarded a large wave of infrastructure contracts to invest in roads and public water systems.

Beyond the non-building sector (which covers these infrastructure projects), the year-over-year value of contracts increased in two major sectors while declining in three others. Manufacturing contracts in January ’26 came in at $70.8 million, almost twice as high as the previous January’s $36.6 million. Monthly awards for multi-family housing projects also climbed by $111.1 million over the same period. Awards for commercial projects, other non-residential projects (excluding commercial and manufacturing), and single-family home contracts declined by $48.6 million, $604.1 million, and $238.0 million respectively.

 

Prepared by Greater Houston Partnership Research Division.

Colin Baker
Manager of Economic Research
Greater Houston Partnership
[email protected]

Clara Richardson
Research Analyst
Greater Houston Partnership
[email protected]