The residential building segment continues to strengthen in the June
quarter, according to the Housing Industry Association , the voice of
Australia’s residential building industry.
Based on preliminary ABS figures that show residential building work
done continued to strengthen in the June 2014 quarter following healthy growth
in March, HIA Economist Diwa Hopkins observes that new home building activity
is likely to represent a positive contribution to overall GDP growth in the
national accounts figures to be released next week.
In the June 2014 quarter, there was $13.40 billion of residential
building work done, 2.2 per cent higher than in the previous quarter and 9.6
per cent higher than in the June 2013 quarter.
Diwa Hopkins notes that the detached house segment was the key driver of
growth in residential building during the June 2014 quarter, compared with the
March quarter when multi-unit building led the charge. In the June 2014
quarter, new house building work contributed 1.6 percentage points to the 2.2
per cent growth in total residential building work done.
However, conditions in the major renovations segment of the market
remained subdued, with the value of this work done declining by 2.4 per cent
during the June 2014 quarter. National accounts figures will reveal the full
story on the renovations market, showing the value of both major and smaller
jobs.
