Large Rise in the Number of New Apartments

Large Rise in the Number of New Apartments

Consents for 1,526 new apartment units were issued in October 2002, the highest level recorded since the apartment series began in January 1990, according to Statistics New Zealand. There were 11 consents issued for new apartment units that were each valued at $3 million or more in October 2002. Together they contributed 71 percent of the total number of new apartment units.

For the year ended October 2002, there were 5,048 new apartments, up 2,614 or 107 percent when compared with the year ended October 2001.

Consents were issued for 3,412 new dwelling units in October 2002. This was the largest monthly total since March 1976. Of the total number of new dwellings in October 2002, 45 percent were new apartment units. The trend series for the number of new dwellings has been increasing steadily since December 2000.

The Auckland region continued to be the main contributor to the number of new dwelling units. Of the total number of new dwelling units issued in October 2002, 1,945 or 57 percent were from the Auckland region. Of these, 1,301 or 67 percent were new apartments. The number of new dwelling units in the Auckland region in October 2002 was 1,098 higher than in October 2001.

When comparing the same months, other regions showing significant increases have been Wellington (up 140 units), Bay of Plenty (up 66 units), Waikato (up 52 units) and Canterbury (up 51 units).

The total value of non-residential building consents issued in October 2002 was $177 million.

Consents issued for shops, restaurants and taverns were worth $43 million, 24 percent of the non-residential buildings total. Consents issued for factories and industrial buildings contributed $29 million or 17 percent in October 2002.

The total value of consents issued for all buildings in October 2002 was $715 million. Residential buildings contributed 75 percent of the total value for all buildings in October 2002, compared with 56 percent in October 2001. For the year ended October 2002, the total value of consents for all buildings was $7,567 million, up $1,044 million or 16 percent when compared with the year ended October 2001.

Brian Pink

Government Statistician

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