This year is shaping up to be a hugely positive one for residential construction in Greater Boston, according to the latest numbers from Dodge Data & Analytics.

In February, residential construction spending in Greater Boston totaled $195 million, a 13 percent increase from Feb. 2015; even more encouraging, year-to-date spending now totals $606 million, which is a 94 percent increase over the same time period in 2015.

New Construction and the Current Housing Market

Greater Boston February spending was still relatively low – it was less than Atlanta’s $648 million, and far below New York’s $1.468 billion – but its year to date jump is nonetheless strong.

That said, there is no direct link between rising construction spending and housing’s current affordability ills, and for one simple reason – multifamily housing. According to Census Bureau numbers, of the 1,279 building permits issues in Greater Boston so far this year, 695 of them (or 54.34 percent) were for multifamily buildings with five or more units. Greater Boston’s housing inventory is incredibly low – 1.8 months for single family and 1.3 months for condos – and if those kinds of permitting numbers persist, than the area’s construction spending will continue to go towards multifamily rental housing, while the construction that remains will be too pricey for most consumers.

Here is a chart breaking down Dodge Data’s numbers in more detail: