New Dwellings Numbers Remain Low

Building Consents Issued: April 2001

Consents for 1,585 new dwelling units, worth $230.2 million were issued in April 2001, according to Statistics New Zealand. This follows 1,762 new dwelling units authorised in March 2001 and 1,397 new dwelling units authorised in February 2001.

During 2001, the number of consents issued each month has continued at the lower levels which were reported in 2000. Since January 2000, the number of monthly consents has averaged 1,631. This compares with an average monthly total of 2,198 in the 1999 calendar year, and a monthly average of 1,779 over the past ten years.

The latest monthly figures however, suggest a rising trend in the number of consents issued, but it is too early to confirm a turning point.

The value of consents issued for non-residential buildings in April 2001 was $190.2 million. This follows values of $226.5 million in March 2001 and $172.0 million in February 2001. The trend for the value of non-residential buildings has flattened in the last few months, after increasing slowly during 2000.

Consents issued for factories and industrial buildings contributed $54.8 million to the total value of non-residential buildings for April 2001. In the last two months the value of consents issued for factories and industrial buildings has been significantly higher than for most months in the last two years.

Consents for farm buildings worth $17.7 million were issued in April 2000. This includes 92 consents issued for milking sheds. In the year ended April 2001, 549 consents were issued for milking sheds. This compares with 297 in the year ended April 2000.

Ian Ewing DEPUTY GOVERNMENT STATISTICIAN

END

© Scoop Media