Housing commencements record significant fall to just over 16,400 in 2025

In December there were 3,065 commencements, double the 1,533 recorded in November.

Housing commencements across the country fell to just 16,412 last year, following a spike in 2024, with the Government hoping to see those numbers increase as it attempts to reach its goal of 300,000 new homes by 2030.

This is a significant decrease from the just under 70,000 housing commencements in 2024, however, these are skewed by government initiatives such as the development levy waiver and the Úisce Éireann rebate which led to construction firms fast-tracking projects towards commencement.

According to the Department of Housing, there were over 176,000 new homes commenced between the start of 2021 and the end of 2025. In order to reach the Government's goal, 50,000 new homes will need to be completed each year over the next five years.

In December there were 3,065 commencements, double the 1,533 recorded in November.

According to the AIB Purchasing Managers Index for the construction sector, December saw another month of contraction in activity. The residential subsector was the best performing of the three subsectors, but it still recorded a decline.

However, there was some positive news as there was an increase in new orders and jobs across the construction sector. Of the units commenced in December, 59% are apartments, 32% are scheme dwellings, and 9% are one-off units. 

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The four local authorities in Dublin accounted for 1,278 of all commencements in December while Cork City accounted for 560. There were two units commenced in each of Carlow County, Leitrim County, Longford County and Roscommon County.

In terms of the commencements throughout 2025, 5,074 were across the four Dublin local authorities while 1,501 were in Cork City. The lowest number of homes commenced were in Leitrim at 52.

Housing minister James Browne said the increase in commencements in December was “very encouraging and signals the uptick in confidence in the construction sector”.

“We now have a new Housing Action Plan which not only delivers record government investment but also commits to creating the best possible environment for housing delivery, not least an increased emphasis on providing the necessary infrastructure. As we continue to implement this plan, I would expect to see commencements rise this year — and year on year,” he said.

MMC

The department also released data on the number of commencements that intend to use modern methods of construction (MMC). MMC refers to new and faster ways of building homes including building frames or parts of homes in offsite, modular construction, pre-fabrication, as well as 3D-printing at lower costs.

The data shows that in the second half of 2025, MMC is intended to be used in 69% of homes in scheme developments, with 61% of these dwellings using timber frame construction. The data also showed that 44% of new apartments intend to be constructed using MMC.

Mr Browne said it is “important that we scale up” the use of MMC “to help us achieve our housing targets, as laid out in our new Housing Action Plan. “These innovative new methods help deliver houses much faster and offer greater cost certainty while at the same time reducing building emissions."

According to the most recent data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO), in the first nine months of 2025, there were 24,325 homes completed — which is a 13% increase on the same period in 2024.