Consent numbers increase in August

The latest consenting figures show another record high for August, making it six months of consecutive record highs for new home consents

There were 4,490 new dwelling consents issued in August 2021 – significantly higher than the August 2020 figure of 3,156. This a seasonally adjusted monthly increase of 3.8%, after rising 2.2% in July 2021.

The annual number of new homes consented in the year ended August 2021 was 46,453, up 24% from the year ended August 2020 This consisted of 25,289 houses, 4,084 apartments, 2,512 retirement village units, and 14,568 townhouses, flats, and units.

Industry reflections

For Building and Construction Minister Hon Poto Williams, the number of consents wasn’t the only information of note – the type of dwelling was just as significant.

“For the sixth month in a row, the annual number of residential building consents have reached another all-time high,” said Williams. “It is encouraging to see a shift in the type of homes we are building; apartments and townhouses will help us deliver affordable, healthy and energy-efficient homes.”

Janet Blake, Manager of System Strategy and Performance at The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, said the size of the workforce is expanding to meet demand.

“Building consent numbers reached record-level highs in 2021 and the size of the workforce increased, reflecting the elevated levels of building activity around the country,” said Blake.

“There are now approximately 275,600 people in construction-related employment, and construction has been the industry with the greatest increase in jobs since the beginning of the pandemic.”

Ups and downs

While the overall new dwelling numbers were up, not all regions experienced a boom. Three of the 16 regions consented less dwellings in August 2021 compared to August 2020, led by Tasman (down nine to 40; -18%), Nelson (down seven to 10; -41%) and Gisborne (down two to seven; -22%). West Coast consented the same number of dwellings in August 2021 compared to August 202 (10).

The remaining regions saw an increase in dwellings consented over the same period, led by Auckland (up 771 to 2,162; +55%), Canterbury (up 266 to 701; +61%) and Bay of Plenty (up 48 to 220; -28%).

Boom for non-residential building consents

In the year ended August 2021, non-residential building consents totalled $7.9 bn, up 15% from the August 2020 year. The building types with the highest value were:

• Education buildings – $1.3bn (up 28%).
• Factories – $1.1.bn (up 54%).
• Offices, administration, and public transport buildings – $1.1bn (up 10%).