Building approvals fade
Total building approvals over the year to July remained elevated at more than 230,000 (up from about 220,000 a year ago), but the financial year kicked off in a more subdued manner with a 5.2 per cent seasonally adjusted decline.
Sydney unit approvals are recording punchier declines now, with July approvals down by some 35 per cent from a year earlier.
I've discussed previously how Hobart is only a comparatively small city and therefore a potentially larger and faster percentage increase in the dwelling stock is a dynamic worth watching.
Detached house approvals in July were up by more than 250 per cent from a year earlier in the Tasmanian capital, taking total annual approvals to a 99-month high.
We're talking comparatively small numbers in absolute terms, of course, but the trajectory is worth watching carefully for those interested in Hobart's housing market.
Since these are mainly detached houses approved - and these tend to be built quickly - there is less of a lag effect compared to the big apartment projects of Sydney and Melbourne.
Since these are mainly detached houses approved - and these tend to be built quickly - there is less of a lag effect compared to the big apartment projects of Sydney and Melbourne.
The monthly downturn in residential building approved was more than offset by a huge month-on-month leap in non-residential building work.
This was mainly a New South Wales story, thrusting non-resi work approved in July back above $10 billion.
