The number of new home consents issued in Tauranga has grown almost 52 per cent in one year, statistics show.
Consents for 82 new Tauranga houses were issued in February, up from 54 in February last year said Statistics New Zealand. Seventy-one were issued in January this year.
Rather than a flow on effect from the Reserve Bank's restrictions on high loan-to-value ratio lending, Tauranga Deputy Mayor Kelvin Clout thought the increase in consents reflected increasing numbers of people coming to Tauranga.
"It's more of a reflection of how Tauranga is as a city. We're coming of age, we're getting really good facilities and we're providing more than just the beach and the sunshine. We've got a strong economic base as well."
Mr Clout said Tauranga was coming out of the "gloom" of the global financial crisis and increasing consents also reflected this.