Consent trend flattens

Seasonally adjusted, the number of new dwellings consented continues to fall

According to the latest figures from Statistics New Zealand, 1,758 new dwellings, including apartments, were consented in February – ten fewer than the same month last year.

This included 1,598 non-apartment dwellings and 160 apartments. While the trend for the number of new dwellings consented, including apartments, has more than doubled since March 2011, it is starting to show signs of decreasing.

Seasonally adjusted, the number of new dwellings consented, including apartments, fell 6.3% in February, following a 4.6% decrease in January.

In the regions

Six of the 16 regions consented more new dwellings in February 2015 than in February 2014. Auckland (up 64 to 528; +14%), Hawke’s Bay (up 6 to 35; +21%), Waikato (up 3 to 196; +2%) and Tasman (up 4 to 21; +21%) recorded the largest increases. Gisborne was the only other region to consent more dwellings than last February, with numbers in Southland remaining the same.

The biggest decreases were in Taranaki (down 21 to 25; -46%), Otago (down 18 to 73; -20%), Canterbury (down 13 to 517; -2%) and Bay of Plenty (down 13 to 101; -11%). The other regions to record a decrease were Manawatu-Wanganui, Nelson, Northland, Wellington and the West Coast.

Consents total value exceeds $1.2 billion

The total value of all consents issued in February was more than $1.2 billion, comprising $769 million of residential work and $469 million of non-residential work. For the year ended February 2015, compared with the year ended February 2014, the value of building consents increased for:

• All buildings – up $2.3bn (18%) to $14.8bn.
• Residential buildings – up $1.4bn (17%) to $9.6bn.
• Non-residential buildings – up $900 million (21%) to $5.3bn.