The city of Celina has passed longtime leader Frisco as the hottest new home market in North Texas, according to a look at building permits to date.  Celina has issued 1,352 residential building permits through May 31 of this year, compared to 1,283 in Frisco.  That compares to 629 permits in Celina and 963 in Frisco in the first five months of 2020, although it should be noted that home building slowed in the early months of last year as builders and buyers struggled to figure out the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic. Later in the year, homebuilders in the suburbs north of Dallas-Fort Worth enjoyed a pandemic-driven boom in demand and sales.  Frisco led North Texas in 2020 new home construction permits, with the much-smaller Celina relatively close behind. Builders in Frisco were issued 2,445 residential permits last year compared to 1,862 in Celina.  Frisco has a population of about 210,000, compared with roughly 30,000 people in Celina.

• Dallas Business Journal, June 16, 2021