Dwelling units commenced
| Jun qtr 20 | Mar qtr 20 to Jun qtr 20 | Jun qtr 19 to Jun qtr 20 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| no. | % change | % change | |
| Seasonally adjusted estimates | |||
| Total dwelling units commenced | 42 448 | -5.6 | -8.0 |
| New private sector houses | 25 397 | -0.8 | -1.7 |
| New private sector other residential building | 15 966 | -14.1 | -17.3 |
The total number of dwelling units commenced in Australia fell 5.6% in the June 2020 quarter, in seasonally adjusted terms. The fall was driven by private sector other residential dwellings, which fell 14.1% to 15,966 dwellings in the June quarter following a rise of 8.2% in the March quarter. Private sector house commencements fell 0.8% to 25,397 dwellings in the June quarter following a rise of 2.6% in the March quarter.
Value of work done, chain volume measures
| Jun qtr 20 | Mar qtr 20 to Jun qtr 20 | Jun qtr 19 to Jun qtr 20 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| $m | % change | % change | |
| Seasonally adjusted estimates(a) | |||
| Total value of work done | 28 626.1 | -3.8 | -4.8 |
| New residential building | 14 587.7 | -4.9 | -12.5 |
| Alterations and additions to residential building | 2 232.2 | -5.2 | -0.8 |
| Non-residential building | 11 806.2 | -2.1 | 6.0 |
a. Reference year for chain volume measures is 2017-18
The value of total building work done fell 3.8% in the June 2020 quarter, in seasonally adjusted terms. The fall was driven by new residential building work done, which fell 4.9% to $14,587.7m. Work done on new houses fell 4.7%, while new other residential building fell 5.1%. Non-residential building work done also fell 2.1% in the June quarter following a rise of 2.8% in the March quarter.
About this issue
This publication updates the preliminary estimates released in Construction Work Done, Australia on 26 August 2020. The data in this publication are based on a response rate of approximately 90% of the value of building work done during the quarter. The data are subject to revision when returns from the following quarter are processed. Final data for the June quarter 2020 will be released in the next release of this publication, Building Activity, Australia on 20 January 2021.
Significant revisions this issue
Compared to the estimate published in Building Activity, Australia March 2020 released on 15 July 2020:
- the total value of work done in Australia during the March 2020 quarter has been revised upwards by $772.5m or 2.8% (original, current price).
- the total value of work commenced in Australia during the March 2020 quarter has been revised upwards $1,119.7m or 4.1% (original, current price). This was driven by an upward revision to total non-residential commencements of $642.4m (5.8%), and an upward revision to total residential commencements of $477.3m (3.0%).
- the number of dwelling unit commencements in the March 2020 quarter has been revised upwards by 993 dwellings or 2.4% (original).
Data note
Several time series spreadsheets contain 'np' (not available for publication) annotations from the September quarter 2012 onwards. This is due to confidential data being contained in these series.
Managing the impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19) on building activity statistics
The ABS is currently monitoring for potential impacts from the Coronavirus (COVID-19) on building activity statistics and will continue to do so for the period of the pandemic.
Quality assurance of June quarter data did not identify any significant impact to headline statistics. The designation of construction as an essential service enabled activity to progress despite social distancing restrictions implemented from late March. Since it takes some time to approve and commence an application for building construction work, there will be a lag between any change in demand, the number of applications and subsequent impacts on new work.
The ABS is actively managing the potential risks from COVID-19 to data collection operations. The ABS appreciates the support of survey respondents in continuing to provide the data to compile this publication.
Suspension of trend series
The trend series attempts to measure underlying behaviour in construction activity. This measurement will be significantly affected by changes to regular patterns in activity during this time, as the construction industry faces on-going uncertainty. If the trend estimates in this publication were to be calculated without fully accounting for this irregular event, they would likely provide a misleading view of underlying building activity.
It may be some time before the underlying trend in building activity can be accurately estimated. The trend series have therefore been suspended starting from June 2020. The trend series will be reinstated when more certainty emerges in the underlying trend.
Inquiries
For further information about these and related statistics, contact the National Information and Referral Service on 1300 135 070. The ABS Privacy Policy outlines how the ABS will handle any personal information that you provide to us.
Feature articles
This release includes two feature articles 'Building a New Home: Construction Cost Changes' and 'Small Area Dwelling Completions', which can be accessed in the 'Articles' section below.
Updated data for the most recent financial year on average commencement times, average completion times and abandonment rates for new dwellings can be found in the 'Data downloads - data cubes' section of this release. For more information about these data please see the previously released feature articles linked in the 'Article archive' below.