House registrations down 90% in rural areas over 12 months, says CIF

THE number of new houses registered fell sharply over the last 12 months with many rural areas seeing a near 90% drop.

Figures released by the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) show the number of new homes registered in the year to the end of April 2009 plunged more than 70% compared with the same period a year earlier. Just 19 houses were registered in Longford in the 12 months compared with 90 in the previous year. Cavan saw a 89% drop with just 65 houses registered compared with 594 a year earlier.

According to the figures, which are based on stats compiled by Homebond and Premier, Dublin saw a 55% drop in registrations with 3,017 houses registered in the last 12 months compared with 6,708 the previous year. In Cork registrations plunged 64%, while Limerick was particularly hit falling 82%.

A total of 7,936 houses were registered nationally in the period compared with 26,836 in the 12 months to the end of April 2008.

The CIF will launch a report today focusing on the construction industry in the mid-west. The CIF will reveal details of the volume of construction activity and employment, details about the residential sector, civil engineering projects, regional infrastructural and public projects and industrial relations issues. It will focus on activity in the residential market in the region, the Limerick Regeneration Project, the number of job losses in last two years and the projection for employment figures for next 12 months.

The report will also examine how the establishment of NAMA will affect the construction industry.