Analysis
NAICS 236116 is the 2022 national industry for new multifamily housing construction (except for-sale builders), part of 23611 (Residential Building Construction). Census lists 17 example activities under it in the official index.
Between 2018 and 2023 the number of establishments grew 22% and employment rose 24%. The 2018 count used NAICS 2017, so part of a large move can come from codes being redefined rather than from businesses opening or closing.
County Business Patterns counts 4,014 US establishments in this code in 2023, employing 56,980 people at an average annual payroll of $103,864 per employee (86th percentile of national industries). 58% of the establishments have fewer than five employees, which is close to the national mix.
By establishments it ranks 4th of the 4 codes at this level within Residential Building Construction, with 1.9% of them.
Its index entries, the activities Census uses to assign businesses to this code, include apartment building construction general contractors, condominium, multifamily, construction general contractors, construction management, multifamily building and cooperative apartment, construction general contractors, among 17 in all.
Census lists 4 related activities that belong elsewhere, most often in 236117, 236118, 238 and 531110. Businesses that do several things are classified by their primary activity, the one that generates the most value, so check those boundaries before settling on this code.
Official definition
This U.S. industry comprises general contractor establishments primarily responsible for the construction of new multifamily residential housing units (e.g., high-rise, garden, town house apartments, and condominiums where each unit is not separated from its neighbors by a ground-to-roof wall). Multifamily design-build firms and multifamily housing construction management firms acting as general contractors are included in this industry.
Source: US Census Bureau, NAICS 2022 Manual.
Not this code if…
| The business mainly does | Use instead |
|---|---|
| Building multifamily buildings on their own account for sale as speculative builders or merchant builders | 236117 New Housing For-Sale Builders |
| Remodeling or repairing existing multifamily housing and other residential buildings | 236118 Residential Remodelers |
| Performing specialized construction work on multifamily housing and other residential buildings, generally on a subcontract basis | 238 Specialty Trade Contractors |
| Constructing and leasing residential buildings on their own account | 531110 Lessors of Residential Buildings and Dwellings |
Index entries (17)
- Apartment building construction general contractors
- Condominium, multifamily, construction general contractors
- Construction management, multifamily building
- Cooperative apartment, construction general contractors
- Custom builders (except for-sale), multifamily buildings
- Duplex (i.e., one unit above the other), construction general contractors
- Garden apartment construction general contractors
- High-rise apartment construction general contractors
- Home builders (except for-sale), multifamily
- Housing, multifamily, construction general contractors
- Low income housing, multifamily, construction general contractors
- Low-rise apartment construction general contractors
- Multifamily building construction general contractors
- Panelized multifamily housing assembled on site by general contractors
- Precut multifamily housing assembled on site by general contractors
- Prefabricated residential building erection, multifamily
- Residential construction, multifamily, general contractors