The total number of dwellings approved fell 6.1 per cent in August to 13,991, after an 11.0 per cent rise in July, according to seasonally adjusted data released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
Daniel Rossi, ABS head of construction statistics, said: "The result was driven by a 16.5 per cent fall in approvals for private dwellings excluding houses, following a July increase. The movements in dwellings excluding houses continue to be the result of volatility in apartment approvals, with the broad environment around apartments remaining subdued."
"Private sector house approvals continued to slowly rise, up 0.5 per cent."
| Total dwellings | Private sector houses | Private sector dwellings excluding houses | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug-09 | 12,878 | 9,408 | 2,741 |
| Sep-09 | 13,939 | 9,521 | 3,793 |
| Oct-09 | 13,640 | 9,922 | 2,953 |
| Nov-09 | 14,997 | 9,897 | 3,586 |
| Dec-09 | 15,145 | 10,007 | 3,629 |
| Jan-10 | 15,018 | 9,984 | 3,258 |
| Feb-10 | 15,512 | 9,984 | 3,526 |
| Mar-10 | 16,858 | 9,944 | 4,635 |
| Apr-10 | 16,016 | 9,573 | 4,792 |
| May-10 | 15,078 | 9,299 | 4,475 |
| Jun-10 | 14,513 | 9,133 | 4,594 |
| Jul-10 | 15,466 | 8,915 | 5,508 |
| Aug-10 | 15,162 | 8,687 | 5,431 |
| Sep-10 | 13,644 | 8,490 | 4,443 |
| Oct-10 | 15,452 | 8,564 | 6,214 |
| Nov-10 | 14,205 | 8,390 | 5,198 |
| Dec-10 | 14,877 | 8,484 | 5,678 |
| Jan-11 | 13,258 | 8,339 | 4,586 |
| Feb-11 | 12,980 | 8,294 | 4,346 |
| Mar-11 | 13,968 | 8,188 | 5,311 |
| Apr-11 | 13,915 | 8,145 | 5,515 |
| May-11 | 12,818 | 8,010 | 4,518 |
| Jun-11 | 12,704 | 8,017 | 4,316 |
| Jul-11 | 13,181 | 7,667 | 4,991 |
| Aug-11 | 14,756 | 7,774 | 6,564 |
| Sep-11 | 12,340 | 7,764 | 4,330 |
| Oct-11 | 11,438 | 7,277 | 3,960 |
| Nov-11 | 11,703 | 7,620 | 3,870 |
| Dec-11 | 11,755 | 7,693 | 3,925 |
| Jan-12 | 11,249 | 7,792 | 3,243 |
| Feb-12 | 11,702 | 7,362 | 4,184 |
| Mar-12 | 11,768 | 7,507 | 4,081 |
| Apr-12 | 10,979 | 6,824 | 4,055 |
| May-12 | 13,976 | 7,302 | 6,542 |
| Jun-12 | 14,994 | 7,282 | 7,495 |
| Jul-12 | 11,809 | 7,681 | 3,877 |
| Aug-12 | 13,204 | 7,700 | 5,371 |
| Sep-12 | 15,436 | 7,934 | 7,334 |
| Oct-12 | 14,137 | 7,826 | 5,844 |
| Nov-12 | 13,956 | 7,711 | 5,999 |
| Dec-12 | 14,019 | 7,767 | 6,041 |
| Jan-13 | 12,640 | 7,811 | 4,639 |
| Feb-13 | 13,809 | 7,774 | 5,379 |
| Mar-13 | 13,318 | 7,959 | 5,122 |
| Apr-13 | 15,064 | 8,152 | 6,604 |
| May-13 | 14,292 | 8,373 | 5,429 |
| Jun-13 | 13,846 | 8,277 | 5,182 |
| Jul-13 | 15,111 | 8,545 | 6,229 |
| Aug-13 | 14,921 | 8,414 | 6,318 |
| Sep-13 | 18,576 | 8,671 | 9,632 |
| Oct-13 | 17,501 | 8,722 | 8,517 |
| Nov-13 | 17,303 | 9,243 | 7,767 |
| Dec-13 | 17,030 | 9,062 | 7,712 |
| Jan-14 | 17,667 | 10,196 | 7,163 |
| Feb-14 | 16,907 | 9,748 | 6,942 |
| Mar-14 | 16,048 | 9,384 | 6,407 |
| Apr-14 | 16,300 | 9,772 | 6,171 |
| May-14 | 16,814 | 9,786 | 6,801 |
| Jun-14 | 16,746 | 9,662 | 6,753 |
| Jul-14 | 16,980 | 9,785 | 6,952 |
| Aug-14 | 18,576 | 9,686 | 8,636 |
| Sep-14 | 16,489 | 9,541 | 6,715 |
| Oct-14 | 18,008 | 9,857 | 7,962 |
| Nov-14 | 20,308 | 9,848 | 10,241 |
| Dec-14 | 20,127 | 9,727 | 9,953 |
| Jan-15 | 19,877 | 9,944 | 9,609 |
| Feb-15 | 19,799 | 9,713 | 9,739 |
| Mar-15 | 20,823 | 9,625 | 10,877 |
| Apr-15 | 18,950 | 9,522 | 9,111 |
| May-15 | 20,838 | 9,553 | 10,995 |
| Jun-15 | 19,461 | 9,908 | 9,209 |
| Jul-15 | 19,709 | 9,740 | 9,067 |
| Aug-15 | 19,406 | 10,081 | 9,168 |
| Sep-15 | 20,251 | 9,818 | 10,162 |
| Oct-15 | 21,611 | 9,740 | 11,635 |
| Nov-15 | 18,783 | 9,646 | 9,057 |
| Dec-15 | 20,118 | 10,284 | 9,666 |
| Jan-16 | 18,758 | 9,844 | 8,622 |
| Feb-16 | 19,866 | 9,817 | 9,695 |
| Mar-16 | 20,577 | 10,245 | 10,126 |
| Apr-16 | 20,830 | 9,999 | 10,629 |
| May-16 | 20,321 | 10,054 | 9,959 |
| Jun-16 | 18,662 | 9,679 | 8,783 |
| Jul-16 | 21,454 | 9,578 | 11,619 |
| Aug-16 | 21,857 | 9,684 | 11,779 |
| Sep-16 | 19,324 | 9,791 | 9,363 |
| Oct-16 | 16,559 | 9,549 | 6,701 |
| Nov-16 | 18,297 | 9,631 | 8,417 |
| Dec-16 | 18,437 | 9,401 | 8,893 |
| Jan-17 | 17,085 | 9,235 | 7,654 |
| Feb-17 | 19,026 | 9,435 | 9,355 |
| Mar-17 | 16,416 | 9,264 | 6,927 |
| Apr-17 | 18,234 | 9,490 | 8,531 |
| May-17 | 16,941 | 9,840 | 6,940 |
| Jun-17 | 18,833 | 9,959 | 8,659 |
| Jul-17 | 19,343 | 10,207 | 8,669 |
| Aug-17 | 19,355 | 10,255 | 8,922 |
| Sep-17 | 19,641 | 10,088 | 9,301 |
| Oct-17 | 19,693 | 10,142 | 9,228 |
| Nov-17 | 23,033 | 10,080 | 12,792 |
| Dec-17 | 17,913 | 10,162 | 7,593 |
| Jan-18 | 19,367 | 9,922 | 9,175 |
| Feb-18 | 19,204 | 10,267 | 8,628 |
| Mar-18 | 19,712 | 10,440 | 9,117 |
| Apr-18 | 18,439 | 10,588 | 7,654 |
| May-18 | 17,945 | 10,027 | 7,759 |
| Jun-18 | 19,592 | 10,199 | 9,065 |
| Jul-18 | 18,619 | 10,154 | 8,201 |
| Aug-18 | 16,370 | 9,906 | 6,318 |
| Sep-18 | 16,775 | 9,639 | 6,814 |
| Oct-18 | 17,093 | 10,033 | 6,883 |
| Nov-18 | 15,172 | 9,358 | 5,686 |
| Dec-18 | 14,309 | 9,072 | 5,107 |
| Jan-19 | 14,619 | 9,410 | 5,014 |
| Feb-19 | 16,594 | 8,922 | 7,568 |
| Mar-19 | 15,092 | 8,462 | 6,412 |
| Apr-19 | 14,418 | 8,614 | 5,671 |
| May-19 | 14,423 | 8,815 | 5,385 |
| Jun-19 | 15,055 | 8,881 | 5,792 |
| Jul-19 | 13,504 | 8,621 | 4,580 |
| Aug-19 | 13,845 | 8,484 | 5,244 |
| Sep-19 | 14,690 | 8,791 | 5,748 |
| Oct-19 | 14,264 | 8,247 | 5,806 |
| Nov-19 | 14,885 | 8,445 | 6,264 |
| Dec-19 | 16,093 | 8,674 | 7,238 |
| Jan-20 | 13,401 | 8,646 | 4,610 |
| Feb-20 | 16,309 | 8,702 | 7,430 |
| Mar-20 | 15,390 | 8,580 | 6,602 |
| Apr-20 | 14,924 | 8,792 | 5,744 |
| May-20 | 13,368 | 8,811 | 4,264 |
| Jun-20 | 12,942 | 8,432 | 4,127 |
| Jul-20 | 15,194 | 9,204 | 5,662 |
| Aug-20 | 14,430 | 9,514 | 4,743 |
| Sep-20 | 16,065 | 10,558 | 5,122 |
| Oct-20 | 17,447 | 11,133 | 5,973 |
| Nov-20 | 17,796 | 11,518 | 5,946 |
| Dec-20 | 19,276 | 13,256 | 5,775 |
| Jan-21 | 17,060 | 12,087 | 4,640 |
| Feb-21 | 19,990 | 13,938 | 5,651 |
| Mar-21 | 22,821 | 14,058 | 8,315 |
| Apr-21 | 20,114 | 13,461 | 6,399 |
| May-21 | 20,703 | 13,719 | 6,727 |
| Jun-21 | 19,734 | 12,471 | 6,847 |
| Jul-21 | 18,302 | 11,949 | 6,066 |
| Aug-21 | 18,990 | 11,779 | 6,953 |
| Sep-21 | 18,358 | 10,525 | 7,623 |
| Oct-21 | 16,021 | 10,337 | 5,370 |
| Nov-21 | 16,410 | 10,354 | 5,844 |
| Dec-21 | 17,141 | 9,930 | 6,949 |
| Jan-22 | 13,296 | 8,746 | 4,321 |
| Feb-22 | 18,766 | 9,829 | 7,656 |
| Mar-22 | 15,101 | 9,722 | 5,083 |
| Apr-22 | 15,393 | 9,747 | 5,498 |
| May-22 | 16,498 | 9,689 | 6,479 |
| Jun-22 | 16,666 | 9,734 | 6,475 |
| Jul-22 | 14,376 | 9,863 | 4,294 |
| Aug-22 | 17,480 | 10,045 | 7,161 |
| Sep-22 | 16,763 | 9,590 | 6,983 |
| Oct-22 | 15,310 | 9,290 | 5,841 |
| Nov-22 | 14,992 | 9,015 | 5,640 |
| Dec-22 | 17,358 | 8,837 | 7,923 |
| Jan-23 | 12,205 | 7,869 | 4,175 |
| Feb-23 | 13,587 | 8,707 | 4,655 |
| Mar-23 | 13,153 | 8,317 | 4,618 |
| Apr-23 | 12,888 | 8,237 | 4,454 |
| May-23 | 15,332 | 8,170 | 6,958 |
| Jun-23 | 13,850 | 8,197 | 5,120 |
| Jul-23 | 12,931 | 8,169 | 4,513 |
| Aug-23 | 13,508 | 8,618 | 4,704 |
| Sep-23 | 13,795 | 8,429 | 5,115 |
| Oct-23 | 14,635 | 8,935 | 5,538 |
| Nov-23 | 14,657 | 8,710 | 5,766 |
| Dec-23 | 13,626 | 8,816 | 4,515 |
| Jan-24 | 12,926 | 7,713 | 4,990 |
| Feb-24 | 13,179 | 8,895 | 3,936 |
| Mar-24 | 13,277 | 9,051 | 4,068 |
| Apr-24 | 13,521 | 8,994 | 4,225 |
| May-24 | 14,319 | 9,205 | 4,948 |
| Jun-24 | 13,414 | 9,200 | 3,981 |
| Jul-24 | 14,893 | 9,287 | 5,293 |
| Aug-24 | 13,991 | 9,338 | 4,418 |
Private house approvals mixed across the states
Private sector house approvals rose 0.5 per cent (to 9,338 dwellings), to be 8.4 per cent higher than August 2023.
New South Wales recorded the largest rise of all the states, at 3.9 per cent. Western Australia continued to track higher, approving its highest number of private houses since June 2021.
Private dwellings excluding houses fall in August
Private sector dwellings excluding houses fell 16.5 per cent (to 4,418 dwellings), to be 6.1 per cent lower than one year ago.
The August result was driven by a decrease in approvals for high-density apartments. There were 1,214 apartments approved in nine or more storey blocks in August, in original terms, compared to 2,504 in July.
| Private sector houses | Total dwelling units approved | |
|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | 1,829 | 3,387 |
| Victoria | 2,929 | 4,589 |
| Queensland | 1,999 | 2,944 |
| South Australia | 792 | 1,015 |
| Western Australia | 1,522 | 1,747 |
Residential approvals drive value fall
The value of total building approved fell 0.2 per cent (to $13.25 billion), following a 6.9 per cent rise in July.
Total residential building value fell 6.7 per cent (to $7.96 billion), primarily driven by a fall of 7.9 per cent in the value of new residential building approved (to $6.81 billion). Alterations and additions rose 1.4 per cent (to $1.14 billion), in seasonally adjusted terms.
The value of approved non-residential building rose 11.5 per cent (to $5.30 billion), following a 2.8 per cent July increase.
