Our take on the latest Building work put in place (Thu 6 Mar 2025)
Residential volumes down 4.9% from September 2024 (sa)
Non-residential volumes down 3.1% from September 2024 (sa)
Total activity down 14% from December 2023
The key numbers...
- The volume of building work put in place fell 4.4% in the December 2024 quarter from the previous quarter. The drop was driven by declines in both residential and non-residential activity, down 4.9% and 3.1% respectively (all figures seasonally adjusted).
- Total building activity in the December quarter was 14% lower than a year earlier, the largest decline in real terms since September 2011 (excluding the lockdown-affected June 2020 quarter). Activity has fallen compared to a year ago for a year and a half.
- Residential activity continues to decline faster than non-residential activity which tends to lag the economic cycle. Residential activity has fallen relative to a year ago for two consecutive years, and it was down by 16%pa in December.
- Non-residential activity saw its largest annual decline in over two years, down 9.4%pa, although the decline was exacerbated by the strong December 2023 quarter, which was the largest on record. The annual fall marks the third consecutive quarter of annual declines for the first time in four years.
Declines across construction activity steepen
Annual % changes in building work put in place volumes
...and our reaction
- Residential activity continues to decline largely as expected, with activity 0.4% below our forecast, and quarterly volumes declining for nine consecutive quarters (seasonally adjusted). Having reached double digits in the June 2024 quarter, annual declines have continued to steepen in the second half of last year.
- New dwellings activity was 13% lower in December than a year earlier, coming in 2.7% below our forecast, driving the slight underperformance in total residential activity.
- There continues to be more residential additions and alterations (A&A) work occurring than forecast, with activity in the December quarter 16% above forecast. Nevertheless, residential A&A work was still down 18% from a year ago, to the lowest value of work in two years.
- The overperformance was exclusive to non-residential activity, which was 4.1% above forecast. Non-residential activity’s overperformance was driven by accommodation building ($43m higher than expected), while social and storage building were also $38m and $37m higher than expected respectively. In contrast, education and offices building were below forecast by $44m and $17m respectively.
- Declines in non-residential activity reflect weaker consent levels from mid-2023, and with the pipeline of available work shrinking, we expect to see further declines in non-residential activity over 2025.
Latest updates
Premium
Building work put in place
Construction activity at a 10-year low
Thu 4 Jun 2026
Quarterly
13% Non-residential activity in March 2026 from March 2025
3.9% Residential activity from March 2025
Total building activity at its lowest level (excl lockdowns) since 2015Premium
Building work put in place
Non-residential work hammered as residential softens further
Thu 5 Mar 2026
Quarterly
6.5% Non-residential activity from September 2025 (sa)1.1% Residential activity from September 2025 (sa)Total building activity at its lowest level (excl lockdowns) since 2015Building work put in place
Non-residential activity continues to decline
Thu 4 Dec 2025
Quarterly
Residential volumes up 3.3% in September from June 2025 (sa)Non-residential volumes down 1.3% in September from June 2025 (sa)Total quarterly activity now down 5.3% from September 2024Building work put in place
Lower residential activity leads construction decline
Thu 4 Sept 2025
Quarterly
Residential volumes down 2.9% in June from March 2025 (sa)Non-residential volumes down 0.4% in June from March 2025 (sa)Total quarterly activity now down 9.6% from June 2024