This release includes data on average commencement times, average completion times and abandonment rates for new dwellings in the Data downloads section. For more information about these data please see the June 2019 feature articles in the Article archive section.
Building Activity, Australia
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Provides estimates of value of building work and number of dwellings commenced, completed, under construction and in the pipeline
Reference period
June 2021
Released
13/10/2021
Key statistics
In seasonally adjusted terms in the June quarter:
- Total dwelling unit commencements rose 23.2% to 64,596 dwellings.
- New private sector house commencements rose 13.7% to 40,820 dwellings.
- New private sector other residential commencements rose 47.5% to 22,515 dwellings.
- The value of total building work done fell -0.2% to $30.3b.
Number of dwellings commenced
| Jun qtr 21 no. | Mar qtr 21 to Jun qtr 21 % change | Jun qtr 20 to Jun qtr 21 % change | |
|---|---|---|---|
Seasonally adjusted | |||
| Total dwelling units commenced | 64,596 | 23.2 | 52.8 |
| New private sector houses | 40,820 | 13.7 | 58.9 |
| New private sector other residential building | 22,515 | 47.5 | 45.1 |
The total number of dwelling units commenced rose 23.2% to a record high of 64,596 dwellings in the June quarter, in seasonally adjusted terms. Private sector new house commencements rose 13.7% to a record high of 40,820 dwellings, following a 6.0% rise in the March quarter. Private other residential dwelling commencements rose 47.5% to 22,515 dwellings, following a -9.6% fall in the March quarter.
Value of work done
Reference year for Chain Volume Measures is 2018-2019
| Jun qtr 21 $m | Mar qtr 21 to Jun qtr 21 % change | Jun qtr 20 to Jun qtr 21 % change | |
|---|---|---|---|
Seasonally adjusted chain volume measures | |||
| Total value of work done | 30,333.8 | -0.2 | 2.0 |
| New residential building | 15,918.0 | -0.7 | 4.7 |
| Alterations and additions to residential building | 2,796.4 | -1.9 | 21.5 |
| Non-residential building | 11,619.4 | 0.9 | -5.1 |
The value of total building work done fell -0.2% to $30.3b in the June quarter, in seasonally adjusted terms. The fall was driven by new residential building work done, which fell -0.7% to $15.9b. Work done on new houses fell -0.4% to $9.9b, while new other residential building fell -1.3% to $6.1b. Non-residential building work done rose 0.9% to $11.6b.
Data downloads
Time series spreadsheets
Data files
TABLE 01. Value of Building Work Done by Sector, Australia - Chain Volume Measures
TABLE 02. Value of Building Work Done by Sector, States and Territories - Chain Volume Measures
TABLE 03. Value of Residential Building Work Done by Sector, Australia - Chain Volume Measures
TABLE 04. Value of Residential Building Work Done, States and Territories - Chain Volume Measures
TABLE 05. Value of Building Work Commenced by Sector, Australia - Chain Volume Measures
TABLE 06. Value of Building Work Commenced by Sector, States and Territories - Chain Volume Measures
TABLE 07. Value of Residential Building Work Commenced by Sector, Australia - Chain Volume Measures
TABLE 08. Value of Residential Building Work Commenced, States and Territories - Chain Volume Measures
TABLE 09. Value of Building Work Done, States and Territories - Chain Volume Measures
TABLE 10. Value of Building Work Done, States and Territories - Chain Volume Measures: Original
TABLE 11. Value of Building Work Commenced, States and Territories - Chain Volume Measures: Original
TABLE 12. Value of Building Work Done by Sector, Australia
TABLE 13. Value of Building Work Done by Sector, New South Wales
TABLE 14. Value of Building Work Done by Sector, Victoria
TABLE 15. Value of Building Work Done by Sector, Queensland
TABLE 16. Value of Building Work Done by Sector, South Australia
TABLE 17. Value of Building Work Done by Sector, Western Australia
TABLE 18. Value of Building Work Done by Sector, Tasmania
TABLE 19. Value of Building Work Done by Sector, Northern Territory
TABLE 20. Value of Building Work Done by Sector, Australian Capital Territory
TABLE 21. Value of Residential Building Work Done by Sector, Australia
TABLE 22. Value of Residential Building Work Done by Sector, New South Wales
TABLE 23. Value of Residential Building Work Done by Sector, Victoria
TABLE 24. Value of Residential Building Work Done by Sector, Queensland
TABLE 25. Value of Residential Building Work Done by Sector, South Australia
TABLE 26. Value of Residential Building Work Done by Sector, Western Australia
TABLE 27. Value of Residential Building Work Done by Sector, Tasmania
TABLE 28. Value of Residential Building Work Done by Sector, Northern Territory
TABLE 29. Value of Residential Building Work Done by Sector, Australian Capital Territory
TABLE 30. Value of Building Work Commenced by Sector, Australia
TABLE 31. Value of Residential Building Work Commenced by Sector, Australia
TABLE 32. Value of Total Building Work Done, States and Territories
TABLE 33. Number of Dwelling Unit Commencements by Sector, Australia
TABLE 34. Number of Dwelling Unit Commencements by Sector, States and Territories
TABLE 35. Number of Dwelling Unit Commencements, States and Territories
TABLE 36. Number of Dwelling Unit Commencements by Sector, States and Territories: Original
TABLE 37. Number of Dwelling Unit Completions by Sector, Australia
TABLE 38. Number of Dwelling Unit Completions by Sector, States and Territories
TABLE 39. Number of Dwelling Unit Completions by Sector, States and Territories: Original
TABLE 40. Value of Building Work by Sector, Australia: Original
TABLE 41. Value of Building Work by Sector, New South Wales: Original
TABLE 42. Value of Building Work by Sector, Victoria: Original
TABLE 43. Value of Building Work by Sector, Queensland: Original
TABLE 44. Value of Building Work by Sector, South Australia: Original
TABLE 45. Value of Building Work by Sector, Western Australia: Original
TABLE 46. Value of Building Work by Sector, Tasmania: Original
TABLE 47. Value of Building Work by Sector, Northern Territory: Original
TABLE 48. Value of Building Work by Sector, Australian Capital Territory: Original
TABLE 49. Value of Building Work Under Construction, by Sector, States and Territories: Original
TABLE 50. Value of Building Work Yet to be Done, by Sector, States and Territories: Original
TABLE 51. Value of Non-residential Building Work Done, by Sector, Australia: Original
TABLE 52. Value of Non-residential Building Work Done, by Sector, New South Wales: Original
TABLE 53. Value of Non-residential Building Work Done, by Sector, Victoria: Original
TABLE 54. Value of Non-residential Building Work Done, by Sector, Queensland: Original
TABLE 55. Value of Non-residential Building Work Done, by Sector, South Australia: Original
TABLE 56. Value of Non-residential Building Work Done, by Sector, Western Australia: Original
TABLE 57. Value of Non-residential Building Work Done, by Sector, Tasmania: Original
TABLE 58. Value of Non-residential Building Work Done, by Sector, Northern Territory: Original
TABLE 59. Value of Non-residential Building Work Done, by Sector, Australian Capital Territory: Original
TABLE 60. Value of Non-residential Building Work Commenced, by Sector, Australia: Original
TABLE 61. Value of Non-residential Building Work Commenced, by Sector, New South Wales: Original
TABLE 62. Value of Non-residential Building Work Commenced, by Sector, Victoria: Original
TABLE 63. Value of Non-residential Building Work Commenced, by Sector, Queensland: Original
TABLE 64. Value of Non-residential Building Work Commenced, by Sector, South Australia: Original
TABLE 65. Value of Non-residential Building Work Commenced, by Sector, Western Australia: Original
TABLE 66. Value of Non-residential Building Work Commenced, by Sector, Tasmania: Original
TABLE 67. Value of Non-residential Building Work Commenced, by Sector, Northern Territory: Original
TABLE 68. Value of Non-residential Building Work Commenced, by Sector, Australian Capital Territory: Original
TABLE 69. Value of Non-residential Building Work Under Construction, by Sector, Australia: Original
TABLE 70. Value of Non-residential Building Work Under Construction, States and Territories: Original
TABLE 71. Value of Non-residential Building Work Completed, by Sector, Australia: Original
TABLE 72. Value of Non-residential Building Work Completed, States and Territories: Original
TABLE 73. Value of Non-residential Building Work Yet to be Done, by Sector, Australia: Original
TABLE 74. Value of Non-residential Building Work Yet to be Done, States and Territories: Original
TABLE 75. Value of Building Work Completed by Sector, Australia
TABLE 76. Number of Dwelling Units Under Construction, by Sector, Australia: Original
TABLE 77. Number of Dwelling Units Under Construction, by Sector, States and Territories: Original
TABLE 78. Value of Work in the Pipeline, Current Prices, Original, Australia
TABLE 79. Value of Work in the Pipeline, States and Territories, Current Prices, Original
TABLE 80. Number of Dwellings Approved but Not Yet Commenced at End of Quarter, States and Territories, Original
File contents
The Building Activity: Australia data cube contains original current price data at finer levels of building type than is available in the time series spreadsheets.
| The Building Activity: Australia pivot table contains the following data items | |
|---|---|
| Data item | Classification |
| State/Territory | All States and Territories |
| Reference quarter | Quarterly (September 2001 to current) |
| Sector of ownership | Private, Public, Total |
| Type of building | Houses |
| Semi-detached, row or terrace houses, townhouses - One storey | |
| Semi-detached, row or terrace houses, townhouses - Two or more storeys | |
| Semi-detached, row or terrace houses, townhouses - Total | |
| Apartments - In a one or two storey block | |
| Apartments - In a three storey block | |
| Apartments - In a four to eight storey block | |
| Apartments - Nine or more storeys | |
| Apartments - Total including those attached to a house | |
| Total other residential | |
| Total residential | |
| Retail and wholesale trade buildings | |
| Transport buildings | |
| Offices | |
| Commercial buildings n.e.c | |
| Commercial buildings - Total | |
| Factories and other secondary production buildings | |
| Warehouses | |
| Agricultural and aquacultural buildings | |
| Other industrial buildings n.e.c. | |
| Industrial buildings - Total | |
| Education buildings | |
| Religious buildings | |
| Aged care facilities | |
| Health buildings | |
| Entertainment and recreation buildings | |
| Short term accommodation buildings | |
| Other non-residential n.e.c. | |
| Other non-residential - Total | |
| Total non-residential | |
| Dwellings excluding new residential | |
| Dwellings excluding houses | |
| Total | |
| Type of work | New |
| Total alterations and additions (incl. refurbishment and conversion) | |
| Total | |
| Data items | Value of work done during quarter ($m) |
| Value of work yet to be done ($m) | |
| Value of work in pipeline ($m) | |
| Value of work not yet commenced ($m) | |
| Value of work commenced ($m) | |
| Value of work completed ($m) | |
| Value of work under construction ($m) | |
| Dwelling units not yet commenced (no.) | |
| Dwelling units commenced (no.) | |
| Dwelling units completed (no.) | |
| Dwelling units under construction (no.) | |
Data cubes
Data files
Relative standard errors, value by sector, stage and type of construction; state and Australia
Relative standard errors, dwellings by sector, stage and type of construction; state and Australia
Relative standard errors; non-residential building by sector and stage of construction, state and Australia
Relative standard errors; value of work in pipeline; state and Australia
Building activity: validation table for data cube
Data items available by Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS)
Abandonment rates for new dwellings
Average dwelling commencement times
Average dwelling completion times
Building activity: Australia
Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2) completions: Australia, 2016-2021 (.CSV)
About this issue
This publication updates the preliminary estimates released in Construction Work Done, Australia on 25 August 2021. The data in this publication are based on a response rate of approximately 85% of the value of building work done during the quarter. This is lower than the average response rate due to difficulties collecting data as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The data are subject to revision when returns from the following quarter are processed. Final data for the June 2021 quarter will be released in the next release of this publication, Building Activity, Australia on 19 January 2022.
Several time series spreadsheets contain 'np' (not available for publication) annotations from the September quarter 2012 onwards. This is due to confidential data being contained in these series.
Inquiries
For inquiries about these and related statistics, contact the Customer Assistance Service via the ABS website Contact Us page. The ABS Privacy Policy outlines how the ABS will handle any personal information that you provide to us.
Changes this release
Revisions
Compared to the estimate published in Building Activity, Australia March 2021 released on 14 July 2021:
- the total value of work done in Australia during the March 2021 quarter has been revised upwards by $178.2m or 0.6% (original, current price).
- the total value of work commenced in Australia during the March 2021 quarter has been revised upwards $1,669.7m or 5.5% (original, current price). This was driven by an upward revision to total non-residential commencements of $1,150.4m (10.0%), and an upward revision to total residential commencements of $519.3m (2.7%).
- the number of dwelling unit commencements in the March 2021 quarter has been revised upwards by 406 dwellings or 0.8% (original).
Suspension of trend series
The trend series attempts to measure underlying behaviour in construction activity. This measurement will be significantly affected by changes to regular patterns in activity during this time, as the construction industry faces on-going uncertainty. If the trend estimates in this publication were to be calculated without fully accounting for this irregular event, they would likely provide a misleading view of underlying building activity.
It may be some time before the underlying trend in building activity can be accurately estimated. The trend series have therefore been suspended starting from June 2020. The trend series will be reinstated when more certainty emerges in the underlying trend.
Update to seasonal adjustment methods
Building Activity uses the concurrent seasonal adjustment method. This means that seasonal factors are re-estimated each time a new data point becomes available. Not accounting for unusual real-world events, such as COVID-19, can distort estimates calculated using this method.
From September 2020, seasonal factors are being calculated using data up to and including June 2020. These are then projected from September 2020 onwards, for:
- Private and total sector non-residential building work done in Victoria.
From December 2020, seasonal factors are being calculated using data up to and including September 2020. These are then projected from December 2020 onwards, for:
- New houses and alterations and additions to residential commencement series in all states and territories.
From March 2021, seasonal factors are being calculated using data up to and including December 2020. These are then projected from March 2021 onwards, for:
- Private and total sector non-residential building work done in Queensland, and
- new houses and alterations and additions to residential work done series in all states and territories.
This approach, known as the forward factor method, ensures that the seasonal factors are not distorted by COVID-19 impacts.
Article archive
Building a New Home: Construction Cost Changes, June quarter 2020
Small Area Dwelling Completions, June quarter 2020
Telling storeys - Apartment building heights, December quarter 2019
Characteristics of new residential dwellings - A 15 year summary, December quarter 2019
Abandonment rates for new dwellings, June quarter 2019
Average dwelling commencement times, June quarter 2019
Average dwelling completion times, June quarter 2019
Revisions to building activity statistics, December quarter 2015
Average floor area of new residential dwellings, June quarter 2013
A twenty year history of the cost of building a new house, December quarter 2008
Additional Building and Construction feature articles can be found in Feature Articles by Catalogue Number
Previous catalogue number
This release previously used catalogue number 8752.0.
Post release changes
10/11/2021 - This additional information release contains a small area CSV file of experimental dwelling completions for the September 2016 quarter 2016 to the June 2021 quarter. Refer to the feature article, Small Area Dwelling Completions, for the methodology used.