NZ building consents rise in March, snapping declines
By Paul McBeth
April 30 (BusinessDesk) - New Zealand building consents rose in March, snapping three months of declines, with increased
intentions to build townhouses, units and retirement villages.
Seasonally adjusted dwelling consents climbed 11 percent to 2,175 in March from a month earlier, the biggest monthly
gain since April 2013, and turning from a 6.5 percent fall in February, according to Statistics New Zealand. Of that,
permits for new houses gained 7.1 percent to 1,515 in March, its second monthly gain, and the biggest increase since
December 2013.
On an adjusted basis, new building permits rose 14 percent to 2,271 in March from the same month a year earlier, though
new house permits were more muted with a 0.5 percent gain to 1,640. On an annual basis, all dwelling consents were up 12
percent to 25,038, with new house permits rising 3 percent to 18,012.
"Townhouses, units, and retirement villages have driven the increase in new dwelling consents over the past year,"
business indicators manager Neil Kelly said in a statement.
New Zealand's Reserve Bank is becoming increasingly uncomfortable with the strength of the property market as several
years of under-investment leaves a supply shortage in Auckland, while the Canterbury earthquakes shrank the stock in
Christchurch. Last month deputy governor Grant Spencer noted that annual house price inflation in Auckland reached
almost 17 percent last month and in the face of record migration the city had a shortfall of between 15,000 and 20,000
properties to meet population growth.
Today's data shows consents rose in 10 of the country's 16 regions, with Auckland showing the biggest gain, up 195 to
756 permits from the same month a year earlier, followed by Wellington, where permits increased 96 to 204. Otago
reported the biggest decline in consents, down 24 to 94 in March from the same month a year earlier.
The value of non-residential building permits increased 0.7 percent to $427 million in March from the same month a year
earlier, for an annual gain of 20 percent to $5.27 billion.
(BusinessDesk)