Stats NZ: Housing deprivation worsens as building activity hits a four-year low
The seasonally adjusted volume of building activity in New Zealand fell by 3.2% in the September 2024 quarter, totaling $7.8 billion, according to Stats NZ.
Residential construction saw a 3.5% decline to $4.8bn, while non-residential activity dropped by 2.8% to $2.9bn.
Stats NZ spokesperson Michael Heslop highlighted the downturn.
“Quarterly residential building activity reached its lowest level in four years, in seasonally adjusted terms,” Heslop said.
Annual building values show mixed trends
Over the year ending September, the value of all building work fell by 2.6% to $35bn.
However, non-residential building work increased by 6.4% to $13 billion, driven by health facilities (up 32%), offices (up 11%), and industrial buildings (up 11%).
“The annual value of building work for health buildings, offices, and factories has been increasing steadily for the past three years,” Heslop said.
Marginal gains in some regions
While building activity slowed, some regional housing markets showed resilience. Non-residential construction investments, particularly in health and industrial projects, remain a bright spot, Stats NZ reported.
Severe housing deprivation increases
Recent Stats NZ figures also revealed a troubling rise in severe housing deprivation, with 112,496 people – 2.3% of the population – living in inadequate housing, up from 99,462 in 2018.
Rosemary Goodyear, Stats NZ principal analyst, emphasised the significance.
“Getting a sense of how many New Zealanders are living in severe housing deprivation is an important step towards addressing the challenge of homelessness,” Goodyear said.
Key findings from the 2023 Census include:
- 29.5% increase in people living without shelter
- 63.7% rise in temporary accommodation residents
- 7.4% increase in those living in uninhabitable housing
Children are particularly affected, with more than 12,500 tamariki Māori and 11,000 Pacific children experiencing severe housing deprivation, Stats NZ reported.
Read Stats NZ’s latest figures about building activity here. For more information about housing depravity in NZ, click here.
Get the hottest and freshest mortgage news delivered right into your inbox. Subscribe now to our FREE daily newsletter.
