Housing completions to fall well below demand

Data from the Department of the Environment shows there were just 10,480 new homes completed in 2011.

This is a fall of 28% compared to the 14,600 units completed in 2010 and the lowest level of output since records began in 1970. At the height of the property cycle, completions were running at a level of some 90,000 units per annum.

Completions as recorded by the department are measured by connections to the ESB network, and as such incorporate the finishing out of work in progress for some time as well as new construction activity. The best indication of the level of this new construction activity is given by commencement notices, which are required for all new housing starts, apart from local authority direct builds.