New Building Permits
Building permits are required for any construction, alteration or repair work on private property within the City of Los Angeles. The New Residential Building Permits variable includes withdrawn, expired, refunded and revoked permits and serves as a measure of the total number of permits approved for new residential construction by the City. 

The number of new building permits for residential dwellings is a measure of investment and development in a neighborhood, which can have both positive and negative impacts on a community. Renovation and new construction can increase property values, provide new employment opportunities, and increase the supply of housing. On the other hand, new construction can raise concerns over increased traffic, parking difficulties, and displacement of low-income residents and small business owners through gentrification. .

Value of Construction Permits
The Valuation of New Building Permit Construction variable includes the value of construction for new residential building permits excluding permits that have been withdrawn, expired, refunded or revoked – seeking to capture only construction that is actually taking place. 

The value of work for issued construction permits shows the total costs associated with housing investment and development in a community. This is an important tool to measure the amount of capital and financial resources being invested in a neighborhood, and can be compared with the benefits of the developments to determine whether or not they had a net positive or negative impact.