The number of planning permissions granted for new houses and apartments in the first half of this year was down by more than 15% compared with the same period last year, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).

Its figures show that a sharp fall in the number of planning permissions granted through Strategic Housing Development (SHD) applications, seen in the first quarter of this year, continued in the second quarter.

Under SHD, applications for developments of at least 100 residential units, or 200-plus student-bed spaces, can be made directly to An Bord Pleanála.

Warning on volatility

The CSO figures show that just over 18,000 homes were given the go-ahead in the first six months of this year – down by more than 15% from a year earlier.

Just under 7,000 of these were houses – a drop of almost 15% from the same period last year. Apartment permissions fell by almost 16% to just over 11,000.

The apartment figures were affected by a 34% fall in the number units approved under SHD. Apartment permissions have been higher than houses since the third quarter of 2019.

Last year, the number of planning permissions granted for apartments jumped by almost 34% to the highest level since 2005, with SHD approvals accounting for more than three-quarters of the total.

For the second quarter of 2021, just over 11,000 permissions were granted for houses and apartments – up 53% from the same period in 2020. The CSO warns, however, that quarterly figures can be volatile, and that the year-to-date comparison provides a better picture.