30 Jul 2014

New building consents rebound

6:35 pm on 30 July 2014

The number of consents for new houses and apartments has rebounded.

Official figures show the seasonally adjusted number of dwelling consents rose 3.5 percent in June compared with the previous month, when they fell due to fewer apartment permits.

Excluding volatile apartment numbers, permits rose 2.9 percent.

Statistics New Zealand said the trend for consents is at its highest level since August 2007, but it's still 20 percent below the peak experienced in 2003.

Senior economist at ANZ Bank, Mark Smith, says consents haven't risen as fast as expected despite the need for new homes in Christchurch and Auckland.

He said building costs rose to nearly 5.5 percent in the June year, and while that's below last year's 7 percent growth rates, inflation pressures are starting to build again in the industry.

The trend for non-residential consents hit its highest ever level, boosted by a $70 million approval for a hospital in Christchurch last month.