NZ building consents up 10% in Aug - Westpac

New Zealand’s residential building consents jumped by 10% in August and the increase was driven entirely by consents for multiples (apartments, townhouses etc) which had their single biggest month in 13 years, explains Michael Gordon, Research Analyst at Westpac.

Key Quotes

“The result was much stronger than we expected for the month, though it doesn’t contradict our broader view of the homebuilding industry. There were a particularly large number of apartments consented in Auckland in August, but this followed a shockingly low number in July. On a three-month average basis, it still appears that the pace of building in Auckland has flatlined over the last year, at a level well short of what’s needed to match population growth.”

“Dwelling consents in Canterbury were down slightly, after a pickup in July. We expect post-earthquake reconstruction to continue its gradual wind-down.”

“The value of non-residential consents rose to $706m in August. The trend in non-residential consents appears to be improving again, after stalling through the early part of this year.”