Multi-unit developments boost consent numbers

New home consents rose 6.2% in the year ended October 2025, driven by strong growth in multi-unit developments while stand-alone house numbers saw only modest gains 

In total, 35,552 new homes were consented in the year ended October 2025 – an increase of 6.2% compared with the year ended October 2024. This included 19,369 multi-unit homes (up 10.2%) and 16,183 stand-alone homes (up 1.9%). 

“The lift we are seeing this year is being driven by higher-density homes rather than traditional stand-alone houses,” economic indicators spokesperson Michelle Feyen said. 

“Townhouses, flats, and units were the main contributor to this rise, supported by a rebound in apartment consents.” 

Of the multi-unit homes consented, there were 15,484 townhouses, flats and units (+9.9% compared with the year ended October 2024), 2,649 apartments (+54.1%) and 1,236 retirement village units (-30.4%).    

In the month of October 2025, there were 3,520 new dwellings consented – an increase of 23.5% compared to October 2024. This number comprised 1,568 stand-alone houses (+15%), 1,612 townhouses, flats and units (+37.3%), 146 retirement village units (+12.3%) and 194 apartments (+6.0%).    

Regions showing growth 

Ten regions consented more dwellings in the year ended October 2025 compared to the previous year. Wellington recorded the biggest increase with 2,202 (+24.7%), followed by Otago with 2,698 (+21.8%), Southland with 398 (+21.0%), Nelson with 245 (+18.4%), Gisborne with 176 (+9.3%), Auckland with 15,017 (+8.3%), Tasman with 308 (+5.8%), Canterbury with 6,926 (+5.4%), Waikato with 2,904 (+1.0%) and Taranaki, which consented 432 (+0.7%). 

The four regions with the most consents issued were:     

• 15,017 in Auckland (+8.3%).     

• 6,926 in Canterbury (+5.4%).     

• 2,904 in Waikato (+1.0%).      

• 2,698 in Otago (+21.8%).     

Increased consents per 1,000 residents  

The number of dwellings consented per 1,000 residents increased to 6.7 for the year ended October 2025, compared to 6.3 in the year ended October 2024.   

Three regions consented above national levels: Otago (10.6), Canterbury (9.9) and Auckland (8.3). 

Non-residential building consents down     

In the year ended October 2025, non-residential building consents totaled $8.9bn, down 4.7% from the year ended October 2024. This series can be influenced by price changes – non-residential construction prices (as measured by the capital goods price index) were up 1.1% in the year ended September 2025. The building types with the highest value were:     

• Offices, administration, and public transport buildings – $1.8bn (+1.9%).  

• Education buildings – $1.4bn (+30%).  

• Storage buildings – $1.4bn (+7.7%).