KEY POINTS:
Building consent numbers tumbled by nearly a third last month compared to March 2007, figures published today by Statistics New Zealand (SNZ) show.
In March this year, consents were authorised for 1567 new units, a decrease of 702 units, or 31 per cent, compared to a year earlier.
Apartment consents fell sharply from 190 in March 2007 to 50 last month, making their contribution to the total last month just 3 per cent, compared with a monthly average of 9 per cent for the previous 12 months.
Excluding apartments, 562 fewer new dwellings were authorised last month, a fall of 27 per cent compared with March 2007.
Seasonally adjusted new dwelling authorisations fell 9.1 per cent last month compared with February.
The trend series for authorised new dwellings has declined since last June.
The two fewer working days due to Easter last month may have contributed to the decrease this March, but it was not possible to quantify the impact, SNZ said.
For the year to the end of March the number of authorised new dwellings fell 4.9 per cent, compared to the previous March year.
The value of authorised residential building consents was $541 million last month, down $169 million or 24 per cent compared to March 2007. The trend series showed decreases for the past nine months.
Non-residential building consents issued last month were valued at $354m, a fall of $59m or 14 per cent from a year earlier.
For the year to the end of March the value of non-residential building consents was up 7.4 per cent from the previous year to $4.26 billion.
The trend for the value of non-residential building consents showed a recent decline, although that apparent change in direction could not be confirmed yet, SNZ said.
All consents issued last month were valued at $896m, down $228m or 20 per cent from March 2007. For the year the total value was $11.88b, up $494m or 4.3 per cent.
In Auckland, the 338 dwelling consents last month was at least 110 consents lower than for any month during the previous year, and almost 200 lower than February.
The value of new dwelling consents in Auckland last month was $113m, also lower than at any other time in the previous year, although only $9m down on the values for December and January.
The Wellington region saw the value of its new dwelling consents halve to $28m in March from February.
The 245 dwelling consents in Canterbury last month were the second lowest in the 13-month period, and the value of $67m the third lowest.
In Waikato the 206 dwelling consents last month were the second lowest in the 13 months, while the value of $52m was the lowest.
Increasing interest rates are now starting to bite fully for the first time, said Pieter Burghout of the Registered Master Builders Federation.
"It's time for the Government and Reserve Bank to consider the macro-economic settings - including interest rates - theat are now having a deep and direct impact on the construction sector," Mr Burghout said.
The Master Builders still predict that the residential building sector will pick up again around the last quarter of 2008 or the first quarter of 2009, and that the commercial sector will remain relatively strong overall throughout the year.
"But, we do strongly recommend to the Government and the Reserve Bank that it re-consider the policy settings that are forcing a softening in the sector", Burghout said.
- NZPA, additional reporting by NZHERALD STAFF
