Record number of new homes being built

A record number of houses and apartments sprang up across the country last year, it was revealed today.

Housing Minister Noel Ahern said that accommodation was being built at a much higher rate than the rest of the EU – at over 19 houses per 1,000 people.

There were 76,954 housing units completed during 2004 – an almost 12% rise on the previous 12 months.

“In facing up to the challenges effecting housing supply a number of years ago, the Government has created an environment for these substantial improvements in supply,” Mr Ahern claimed.

The latest figures revealed that over 16,800 housing units were completed in Dublin, which was up 113% on 2003.

The highest number of houses were built in the Fingal area of Dublin with 7,734 finished.

There were also over 25,900 units finished construction in the counties surrounding the capital, including Dublin, Kildare, Meath and Wicklow.

There were 5,912 units of accommodation completed in the Cork region.

Over 2,000 houses or apartments were finished in the Wicklow region.

The junior minister at the Environment Department said the numbers of houses being built has risen steadily from 21,391 in 1993.

Mr Ahern also claimed that “considerable growth” was expected in the construction of more affordable housing.

The minister said around 11,000 houses were expected to be constructed through schemes over the next two years.

The numbers of new house registrations during 2004 stood at over 60,000, an increase of almost 7% on the previous year. Over 18,000 houses are registered to be built in Dublin, while over 3,300 are planned for the Meath region.

Mr Ahern said this put the country in good standing for future housing supplies, with the four million strong population set to increase by another million over the next 15 years.