NZ: Residential dwelling consent issuance surges 16.1% in January - Westpac

Satish Ranchhod, senior economist at Westpac, notes that the New Zealand’s residential consent issuance rose 16% in January, with annual issuance now at a 44 year high.

Key Quotes

“Residential dwelling consent issuance rose by 16.1% in January. In annual terms, the number of homes being consented is at a 44 year high, with 33,576 new homes consented over the past year.”

“Today’s result was stronger than we had expected – we we’re forecasting a 2% drop after last month’s bounce. However, it’s not unusual to get large month-to-month swings in consent numbers associated with apartments or medium density projects which tend to be issued in lumps. We would expect to see some reversal next month.”

“The size of the January rise may also have been exaggerated by seasonal trends – while issuance usually eases back during the January holiday period, this year it held up.”