Building approval for new houses is on the increase. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, in August 2022 total dwellings approved rose 28.1 per cent while the private sector houses approvals lifted by 4.1 per cent.

These figures are good news after a winter slump which saw approvals drop 18.2 per cent in July (a seasonally adjusted estimate).

Building approvals rise across Australia

The statistics show growth across the country. New South Wales had the lion’s share with 70.6 per cent; Victoria had 19.4 per cent; approvals in Western Australia rose 13.6 per cent. The other regions saw modest growth in dwelling approvals: Queensland at 9.5 per cent, Tasmania 3.9 per cent and South Australia 3.5 per cent, in seasonally adjusted terms.

However, house building in New South Wales had a much smaller lift: 12.7 per cent. Western Australia (8.9%), and Victoria (1.2%) also saw house building approvals rise. 

But both South Australia and Queensland saw minor declines in private house building approvals.

Bigger footprint for new Aussie homes

Australian homes are also getting bigger. Architecture and Design reported in May 2022 from 2019-2020, the average size of a newly built home was 235.8 square meters. That’s almost three per cent bigger than in 2018-19 – in effect the largest increase in more than a decade.

And the pandemic has only increased people’s appetite for bigger houses, realestate.com.au reported last year. Home buyers are wanting more space and that’s putting the spotlight on suburbs with larger block sizes and affordable costs per square metre.

It’s a trend being played out across Australian cities, and regional areas.