The number of dwellings approved fell 0.5 per cent in February 2016, in trend terms, and has fallen for 11 months, according to data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today.
Dwelling approvals decreased in February in the Northern Territory (9.7 per cent), South Australia (2.1 per cent), Western Australia (1.4 per cent), Queensland (0.8 per cent), Tasmania (0.5 per cent) and New South Wales (0.1 per cent) but increased in the Australian Capital Territory (4.9 per cent) in trend terms. Dwelling approvals were flat in Victoria, in trend terms.
Approvals for private sector houses fell 0.9 per cent in February, while approvals for private sector dwellings excluding houses fell 0.4 per cent, in trend terms.
Private sector house approvals fell in Western Australia (2.2 per cent), New South Wales (1.5 per cent), South Australia (1.3 per cent), Queensland (0.5 per cent) and Victoria (0.3 per cent).
The seasonally adjusted estimate for dwelling approvals rose 3.1 per cent in February following a 6.6 per cent fall in January. The rise in February was driven by dwellings excluding houses (up 7.7 per cent), offset by a 1.0 per cent fall in approvals for houses.
The largest contributors to the overall rise in seasonally adjusted dwelling approvals by state were Tasmania (24.0 per cent), New South Wales (14.4 per cent) and Queensland (9.5 per cent).
The value of total building approved fell 0.8 per cent in February, in trend terms, and has fallen for seven months. The value of residential building fell 0.7 per cent while non-residential building fell 1.2 per cent.
