Australia’s home builders continue to be inundated with work, yet building starts slowed in the March quarter, according to data released this week by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
The latest figures show that the total number of dwelling units commenced in Australia fell 6.5 per cent in the March quarter, in seasonally adjusted terms.
The fall was driven by standalone houses, which fell 11.6% to 29,672 dwellings and follows a fall of 6.2% in the December quarter. Multiunit starts fell 1.1% to 17,538 dwellings, following a fall of 16.2% in the December quarter.
The total number of homes currently under construction, however, reached a record high of 240,065 in March, an additional 2.9% increase from the record high in December of 233,274.
This increase was driven by new houses, which have increased to record highs since March 2021, with 101,240 under construction in March 2022.
The value of new residential building work rose 0.3% to $15.7b in the March quarter, in seasonally adjusted terms.
The lift was driven by new ‘other residential’ building, which rose 5.0% to $5.8b. Work done on new houses fell 2.3% to $9.9b
