Federal Statistical Office

1st half of 2012: 4.9% more residential units permitted than in 2011

From January to June 2012, the construction of 114 000 residential units was permitted in Germany. As Germany’s Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) reported, that corresponds to 4.9% or 5 400 more residential units than in the first six months of 2011. The positive trend in permissions for residential construction has continued, although it has weakened compared to the previous year. In the first (+27.9%) and second half of 2011 (+16.6%), the increases were much higher.

In terms of residential units, a total of 99 900 newbuilds were permitted in the first six months of 2012, that was 5.3% more than in the prior year period. Mainly the construction of apartments in multifamily houses profited from this increase (+14.0%). While the increase in permissions for residential units in two-family houses remained around the same (+0.3%), permissions for one-family houses fell (– 6.0%).

From January to June 2012, the enclosed volume of the permitted new non-residential units rose by 7.6% to 103.5 mill. m³ compared to the previous year. This development was solely down to the increase in permissions for non-public building owners, which rose by 9.4% to 96.5 mill. cubic metres. For public building authorities on the other hand, with 7.0 mill. m³, 12.2% less building volume in non-residential building was permitted. Based on the type of building, particularly the building of hotels and restaurants (+30.5%) and factories and workshop buildings (+13.1%) was much more frequently permitted than in the prior year period.