Annual number of new homes consented rises

The annual number of new homes consented in the year ended January 2021 was 39,881, up 5.8 percent from the year ended January 2020, Stats NZ said today.

The all-time high for any 12-month period was 40,025 in the year ended February 1974, which is 144 more than the current year-ended figure.

The number of new homes consented per 1,000 residents in the year ended January 2021 was 7.8. The record was in 1973 at 13.4 when the population was around 3 million.

These numbers have mainly been driven by an increase in consents for multi-unit homes, which includes apartments, townhouses, and flats.

"Consents for stand-alone houses have remained relatively flat in recent years, whereas multi-unit homes have increased significantly," construction statistics manager Michael Heslop said.

There were 3,025 new homes consented in the January 2021 month, up 18 percent from January 2020. This was boosted by a large project in excess of $100 million in Auckland, with 276 apartment units being recorded in January. See Greys Ave overview for more information.

The seasonally adjusted number of new homes in January 2021 rose 2.1 percent. The seasonally adjusted number of stand-alone houses fell 3.8 percent.

The rise in residential consent numbers mirrors the increased number of people employed in the construction industry in 2020. See High rises in construction jobs for more information.