Taste for new houses back on the rise

New Zealanders' appetite for new houses appears to be returning, according to figures out yesterday.

Statistics New Zealand said the number of new dwellings authorised, including apartments, for the year to June rose 14 per cent from a year earlier to 16,167 units.

The seasonally adjusted number of new dwellings authorised last month was up 3.5 per cent on May.

The bigger-scale commercial building market is running out of steam with non-residential consents down 25.8 per cent annually and the value of that market sliding from $4.7 billion last year to $3.7 billion.

The value of all residential building work - new houses, apartments, additions and alterations - was $5.7 billion in the June year, up on the 2009 June year's $5.1 billion but below the boom times of 2007 when the sector put up $7.7 billion of work.

The building sector has come off its peak in 2007 when buildings worth $11.7 billion rose. Now the sector is worth just $9.5 billion and building bosses are worried about keeping staff, particularly next year.

Infrastructure and commercial builders say next year's order books are particularly slow and this is affecting analysts' projections of Fletcher Building's income in some divisions.

To read the full NZ Herald article, click here

Posted: 31 Jul 2010

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