The number of approved new builds in Australia fell slightly in October but experts remain optimistic.

According to propertywire.com, data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) revealed that residential building approvals fell by 1.8 per cent last month. Despite this, approvals are at their second highest level since March 2010, Harley Dale, chief economist at the Housing Industry Association (HIA) said.

"The upward momentum to building approvals is impressive and augers well for new home building activity heading into a new year," he explained. "Evidence of faster growth across a wider number of geographical jurisdictions and building approval types will be an important additional element to observe in coming months."

He added that Australia will need to increase the number of new homes constructed each year by quite a lot. This is likely because of rising demand from overseas buyers and an increasing population.

Growth in building approvals was most impressive in Victoria, which saw an increase in October of 23.4 per cent, closely followed by Tasmania (19.7 per cent) and Queensland (10.5 per cent). New South Wales, however, saw a dramatic drop of 33.5 per cent.

Overall, building approvals were up 23.1 per cent compared with the same time last year, reports theaustralian.com.au, and it looks like the positive trend will continue into next year.

Are you looking to buy property in Australia ? Melbourne , Western Australia , Perth , Reedy Creek , Cannon Hill

Are you looking to rent property in Australia ? Surfers Paradise , Byron Bay , Margaret River , Cowes , Dunsborough

Author

  1. avatar
    Laura Varley