Australian dwelling approvals fall 1.1% in May

• Total dwelling approvals fell 1.1% in May to 17,019 units.
• The total building value rose 13.6% to a record $21.07 billion.
• A fall in apartment approvals offset gains in detached housing approvals.

The total number of Australian building approvals fell 1.1% in May to 17,019 dwellings, driven by a decline in apartment approvals.

The fall follows a 5.3% increase in total dwelling approvals when compared to the same period last year.

"The fall in total dwellings approved was driven by a 10.4% fall in private dwellings excluding houses, after a 4% April rise," said Australian Bureau of Statistics Head of Construction Statistics Daniel Rossi.

Private sector house approvals rose 2.8% to 10,537 dwellings, which represents the highest level of approvals since September 2021.

The overall value of building approvals rose 13.6% to an all-time high of $21.07 billion due to non-residential projects like data centres.

The surge in non-residential building value was led by approvals for large data centres located in New South Wales and Victoria.

In contrast, the value of total residential building approvals dropped 5.7% to $10.24 billion during the month.