Approvals to build apartments continue to fluctuate, according to data released this week by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
The latest figures show that total number of homes approved fell 1.1 per cent in May to 17,019, seasonally adjusted.
ABS head of construction statistics Daniel Rossi remarked that the result was driven by a 10.4 per cent fall in multi-unit homes, following a 4 per cent rise in April.
“Private sector house approvals rose 2.8 per cent, to the highest level since September 2021”, Rossi said, adding that this is the fourth consecutive month with over 10,000 houses approved.
Despite the drop in May, the total number of homes approved is 5.3 per cent higher over the year. House approvals gained 2.8 per cent, or 10,537 homes, which is 13.2 per cent higher than one year ago.
“Western Australia continued strong growth in detached housing approvals, rising 9.9 per cent, to be up 24.5 per cent compared to May 2025”, Rossi said.
“New South Wales rose 7.8 per cent in May, returning a fourth straight month with more than 2,000 approved private houses. The result is 24.1 per cent higher than one year ago.
“Meanwhile, private sector house approvals in Queensland fell 3.6 per cent, following its highest result since July 2021 last month.”
The ‘dwellings excluding houses’ sector fell 10.4 per cent to 6,034 homes, 8.6 per cent lower in year-on-year terms. Approvals to build apartments fell 30 per cent to 2,877 dwellings. This is 29.3 per cent lower than the average of the prior twelve months (4,070 dwellings).
The value of total residential building value dropped 5.7 per cent (to $10.24 billion), comprising a 6.6 per cent fall in new residential building (to $8.88 billion) and a 0.1 per cent rise in alterations and additions (to $1.35 billion).