Our take on the latest Residential building consents (Mon 4 Feb 2019)
Annual total new dwellings
32,996
As of December 2018
Residential building consents up 5.6%pa in the December quarter
Townhouse consents up 32%pa in the December quarter
The key numbers...
- Residential consents in December were more stable than the poor performance in November.
- Residential consents in Auckland were back in the black in December after heavily contracting in November, but this growth was still tempered by strong capacity constraints in the region.
- While December showed more life than November, capacity constraints remain a major issue going into the new year, with a tight labour market and constraints on land and financing placing downward pressure on residential construction going forward.
Annual dwelling consents
...and our reaction
- Residential building consents grew 9.8%pa in December, pushing the annual total new dwelling consents to its highest level since 2004.
- Residential approvals in Auckland saw 7.1%pa growth in December, although this performance was still not enough to offset the poor results of the previous two months, with consents over the quarter slipping 2.5% from the December 2017 quarter.
- Townhouses saw 32%pa growth over the December quarter, with a big lift in Auckland supported by strong growth in Wellington and Waikato.
Latest updates
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Residential building consents
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40,581 Annual consents over the June 2026 year
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Wed 3 Jun 2026
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39,087 Annual consents over April 2026 year11% April 2026 consents from March on a seas. adj. basis19%pa Multi-unit consents over April 2026 yearResidential building consents
Residential consent momentum trends sideways
Fri 1 May 2026
Monthly
37,813 Annual consents over March 2026 year
3,300pm Consents trend sideways on a seas. adj. basis14%pa Townhouse consents over March 2026 year