Dwelling approvals record large rise in February

2 April 2022

The total number of dwellings approved rose 43.5 per cent in seasonally adjusted terms in February, following a 27.1 per cent fall in January, according to data released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

Daniel Rossi, ABS Director of Construction Statistics, said: “The large rise in the total number of dwellings approved in February was recorded across all dwelling types.

“Private sector dwellings excluding houses, rose 78.3 per cent, following a 43.3 per cent fall in January. The rise in February was driven by a large increase in apartment approvals in New South Wales and Victoria. Private house approvals also rose in February (16.5 per cent), following a 16.3 per cent decline in January.”

Across Australia, the number of dwelling approvals rose in Victoria (91.0 per cent), New South Wales (48.8 per cent), South Australia (35.9 per cent), Tasmania (12.2 per cent), and Western Australia (8.0 percent), in seasonally adjusted terms. Queensland fell 14.6 per cent, having been the only state to record a rise in January.

Approvals for private sector houses rose in all mainland states: New South Wales (27.2 per cent), Victoria (20.1 per cent), Western Australia (11.5 per cent), South Australia (7.6 per cent) and Queensland (6.4 per cent), in seasonally adjusted terms.

The value of total building approved rose 67.5 per cent in February, in seasonally adjusted terms. The value of non-residential building increased sharply (132 per cent), following a 37.2 per cent fall in January. The February result was the second highest recorded (behind March 2021) and was driven by a large number of public developments, with 14 projects valued over $30m approved.

The value of total residential building rose 38.7 per cent, comprised of a 47.7 per cent increase in the value of new residential building, and a 6.4 per cent fall in alterations and additions.