Residential building sector performing well for new houses: report

Estimates from Statistics New Zealand released today show the number of new homes consented in the year ended June 2021 is at an all-time high of 44,299.

The latest report shows that the residential building sector is performing well to meet the demand for new houses, says Acting Minister for Building and Construction Michael Wood.

“We’ve broken the record for an annual number of new homes consented yet again and we’re starting to see a pattern here. This Government is committed to supporting the sector so that we can deliver more homes than ever before,” Michael Wood said.

Estimates from Statistics New Zealand released today show the number of new homes consented in the year ended June 2021 is at an all-time high of 44,299. This is an increase of 18 per cent from the June 2020 year. 4,310 new dwellings were consented in June alone, an increase of 3.8 per cent from May 2021.

“Today’s figures demonstrate just how far we’ve come in the last year since facing the initial disruptions of COVID-19,” Michael Wood said.

“We responded to the pipeline uncertainty by investing in the sector to keep the momentum going.

“On top of continuing to run programmes established before COVID-19, such as the Construction Skills Action Plan, a plan of cross-government initiatives to support more people into construction-related education and employment opportunities, the Government responded to the pandemic by providing additional backing to the sector.

“A comprehensive COVID-19 support package was established for apprentices and their employers to provide job security for apprentices at a vulnerable time and created openings for new ones.

“The decisions we made at that critical point have helped us to be in the position we are today. Not only are we consenting more houses than ever before, but we are now seeing record numbers of building and construction apprentices in training.

“These apprentices will help us in our task of continuing to deliver the safe, warm and dry homes we need well into the future,” Michael Wood said.

(With Inputs from New Zealand Government Press Release)