Rebound for housing consents

Stats NZ says there was a rise for housing consents in April, almost reversing the decline in the previous month

Rebound for housing consents
Stats NZ says there was a rise for housing consents in April, almost reversing the decline in the previous month.

Housing consents reached almost 2,800 in May, a rise of 7% from April on a seasonally-adjusted basis.

The rebound follows a 7.4% decline in April which was largely due to Easter.

The consents include around 2,000 for stand-alone houses with a mix of townhouses, flats, units, retirement village units, and apartments making up the balance.

“The 2,039 stand-alone houses consented in May was the highest monthly number since June 2004,” Stats NZ prices, accommodation, and construction senior manager Jason Attewell said. “The trend for new homes is recovering after dipping in late 2016. It's more than double the level of the 2011 low point, and nearly back to the mid-2016 peak."

The level of housing consents has been volatile since the middle of the last decade, with consents generally lower from 2004 to 2009, heading towards the financial crisis. In recent years, it has been increasing with a brief dip in mid-2016.

The recovery from the slower period around Easter will help to ease tight supply issues especially in Auckland.

"In the year ended May 2017, 30,645 new homes were consented, and about one-third of these were in Auckland," Attewell said.

Later this week, Stats NZ will be launching a new experimental series on subnational dwelling completions and stock estimates as part of its innovation website.