The number of residential homes being built in Chicagoland may be on the decline, while more money is being spent on erecting commercial buildings, according to the most recent monthly Dodge Data & Analytics report.

In the Chicago-Naperville-Joliet MSA, nonresidential construction starts amounted to $453 million by the end of the month, up 23 percent compared to last September. Residential building starts, on the other hand, totaled $352.5 million — a 27 percent decrease from September last year.

As for 2017 as a whole, construction starts across the board have been on a steady decline since the start of the year. Nonresidential building starts have fallen from $4.7 billion in 2016 to $4.4 billion this year, a 6 percent decrease. In a more dramatic turn, residential construction starts dropped from $6 billion to $4.8 billion, falling 13 percent in total.

Combined, money spent on both nonresidential and residential construction starts has dipped since 2016, falling 13 percent this year.

Source: Dodge Data & Analytics