The number of residential building permits issued so far this year in Greater Des Moines has fallen compared with last year, but not to despair. There is harmony in the demand for the three housing types that populate the monthly report on permits.

Creighton Cox compiles the permit report, and he believes the numbers point out that we’re in the third year of a typical five-year cycle in which renters transition to buyers.

Permits for single-family homes and town houses increased through June to 1,671 from 1,373 in the year-ago period. Multifamily permits have dropped dramatically, to 613 from 1,221 last year.

That doesn’t mean the multifamily market is crashing. Cox said permits have not been pulled for roughly 600 units that are ready to go in West Des Moines.

“That’s a timing issue rather than a reflection on the industry itself,” he said.

What the numbers do reflect is that renters who fed the multifamily boom in 2012 and 2013 have decided that they would like to be buyers. That market is being fed by millennials who no longer fall into the footloose stereotype and baby boomers who enjoy the smaller size of a town house.

“What I do like seeing is that single-family is up, and more importantly townhomes,” Cox said. “We’re seeing that cycle of renters becoming first-time homebuyers. It’s just the life cycle of housing.

“We’re not seeing single-family starter homes in the $200,000 mark, so we’re seeing that in the townhomes.”

The for-sale town house market is gaining steam in Norwalk, West Des Moines and Johnston. In addition, “pricier” and more spacious town houses — in the 4,000-square-foot range when including decks and garages that can shelter two or three vehicles — are appearing in Des Moines and Ankeny.

“We’re seeing a good mix between the affordable first-time townhome buyer and the retiree,” Cox said. “Now we’re rounding out all of the three types of housing to create a sufficient base for the market.”

The true nature of this year’s market probably won’t be known until permits are counted in September. Still, Cox anticipates a drop-off in permits that are pulled for single-family residences and townhomes as builders try to play catch-up and “complete projects that they already have in the ground.”