NZ home building consents fall 4.1% in June as Canterbury work tapers off

Thursday 30th July 2015

New Zealand residential building consents fell 4.1 percent in June as construction intentions in Canterbury tapered off, with the region's housing rebuild nearing a plateau.

Seasonally adjusted consents for all dwelling types dropped to 2,058 in June from 2,146 in May, according to Statistics New Zealand. New house consents declined 0.4 percent to 1,519.

On an adjusted basis, dwelling consents rose 7.9 percent to 2,042 from the same month a year earlier, as intentions to build new retirement units and townhouses offset a drop in plans for new apartments. New housing consents increased 0.8 percent to 1,502. Canterbury consents fell to 544 from 623 a year earlier, while Auckland permits rose to 704 from 599.

"New dwelling consents growth this month was led by Auckland, which offset the fall in Canterbury," business indicators manager Clara Eatherley said.

The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment's 2015 National Construction Pipeline Report, released yesterday, shows $209.4 billion of work projected over the next six years, peaking in 2016 at $36.5 billion of work. While the value of work is likely to reach a record, the volume is lagging behind due to the increased cost of building.

Today's data show annual residential issuance rose 7.9 percent to 25,154, with new housing consents flat at 17,917.

The value of residential permits rose 9 percent to $689 million in June from a year earlier, for an 11 percent annual gain to $8.08 billion. The value of non-residential work fell 7.5 percent to $454 million in June, for a 17 percent annual increase to $5.36 billion.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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