Planning approvals for new homes drop 21% in 2024 as apartment permissions plummet
Planning permissions for residential dwellings fell off a cliff last year with total approvals from local authorities dropping by 21%, according to new figures.The CSO said that there were just 32,401 housing units approved in 2024, compared with 41,225 in 2023.That large-scale decrease was driven by a massive decline in the number of apartments being approved for construction, dropping by 39%, from 21,487 in 2023 to just 13,194 in 2024.The decline in developers' appetite for building apartments has been well-flagged for some time, with massive inflation in the construction sector making large apartment complexes a much riskier investment for shareholders than previously.However, the drop in planning permissions adds an additional headache for the Government, which has already faced criticism due to the State falling far short of meeting its own housing target of 40,000 new builds per annum.House approvals were also down in 2024, albeit to a far lesser extent than apartments, dropping by 2.7% year-on-year to 19,207 by year's end.That statistic was driven equally by drops in permissions for both one-off houses and large-scale multi-dwelling developments.Meanwhile, almost 50% of the apartments that were actually approved in 2024 were located within Dublin’s four local authorities.The large drop in apartment approvals was especially notable in the final quarter of the year, with a fall of 52% observed in the fourth quarter versus the same period in 2023.The steep decline in planning permissions in the fourth quarter of 2024, in particular, was described as “deeply concerning” by Ian Lawlor of Roundtower Capital, a specialist financier for Irish property investors and developers, who added that the news “suggests that the housing crisis will continue to worsen.” Mr. Lawlor suggested that funding for construction remains a “major challenge,” adding that if the planning system continues to create “uncertainty,” then developers and investors “will hesitate to commit the capital required.”
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