Record low for housing starts as completions plummet to 23,000

HOUSING starts continue to fall and have hit another record low in November.

“The annus horribilis for the Irish house building industry continued in November”, said Dermot O’Leary, chief economist, Goodbody Stockbrokers, in a review of the latest housing starts.

The previous low was reached in October, indicating that builders continue to cut back on new supply in response to the overhang of properties already available on the market.

It looks now as if housing completions will fall to 23,000 next year from a high of 90,000 in 2006.

The figures from HomeBond and Premier confirm that private house starts (one-off and public housing are not included) are likely to fall to less than 13,000 in 2008, down 67% year on year, and 81% from the peak year in 2006, he said.

House building activity has been weak all over the country.

He added “it is our belief that a two-speed housing market will emerge over the coming years in response to the oversupply issues that are apparent in some parts of the country”

Counties in the Midlands have the most acute oversupply issues and “it is those counties that have suffered the greatest falls in house building activity this year”, he said.

The retrenchment is having “a profound impact” on employment levels, something that is set to continue.