This note provides a breakdown of the building work that has been approved within Australia for the referenced month, with a particular focus on residential buildings. This data is an important leading indicator for future construction activity.
- 01 Jul 2026 Building Approvals May 2026
Dwelling approvals fell by a seasonally adjusted 1.1% in May, against expectations of a flat result; this followed a 0.2% decline in April. In contrast to the previous month, the fall in dwelling approvals was due to a 10.4% drop in dwellings other than houses, while private sector house approvals picked up by 2.8% after a slight decline in April.
- 02 Jun 2026 Building Approvals April 2026
Dwelling approvals fell a seasonally adjusted 3.4% in April, steeper than the market expectation for a 1.6% fall, following a 10.5% decline in March. Despite the back-to-back declines, approvals were 10.2% higher than in April 2025.
- 04 May 2026 Building Approvals March 2026
Dwelling approvals dropped by a seasonally adjusted 10.5% in March, broadly in line with market expectations (-10.0%). This followed an upwardly revised surge of 31.0% in February (originally: +29.7%).
- 01 Apr 2026 Building Approvals February 2026
Dwelling approvals surged a seasonally adjusted 29.7% in February, significantly more than the 5.5% increase pencilled in by the market consensus. The surge in seasonally adjusted approvals was mainly due to consents for the building of dwellings other than houses doubling over the month.
- 03 Mar 2026 Building Approvals January 2026
Dwelling approvals fell by 7.2% in January, against market expectations of a 5.0% gain. Building consents declined in all mainland states except for Western Australia, which saw a strong 13.7% increase to the highest level since May 2021.
- 03 Feb 2026 Building Approvals December 2025
Dwelling approvals dropped a seasonally adjusted 14.9% in December, exceeding market expectations of a 6.4% fall.