Home building on the rise in Geelong

A strengthening housing market is proving the catalyst for increased home building in Geelong which is contributing to an improved performance by the local economy.

The ABS reports that 282 houses were approved for construction in Greater Geelong over August which was an increase of 31 or 12.4 percent higher than the 251 approved over July.

So far this year Geelong has approved 2070 new houses for building which is 14.8 percent higher than the 1803 approved over the same period last year.

New house building is now increasing at a faster rate than Melbourne which recorded an increase of 13.2 percent over the same year to date comparisons.

The Surf Coast Bellarine Peninsula region of Greater Geelong has recorded a surge in new house approvals over the first 8 months of this year increasing by 20.9 percent to 931 compared to the same period last year.

The most popular suburb for house building approvals in the Geelong region over the past year ending August was Grovedale with 663. For the Surf Coast – Bellarine Peninsula region, the Ocean Grove-Barwon Heads suburban region was the most popular with 501 approvals.

Strengthening house building activity in Geelong is supporting a growing local economy. The Geelong workforce increased strongly by 32,100 or 28.9 percent over the year ending August according to the latest ABS data.

The labour participation rate has also increased sharply over the year rising to a healthy 66.0 percent and now similar to Melbourne’s at 66.2 percent,

Dr Andrew Wilson is Domain Group Chief Economist Twitter@DocAndrewWilson join on LinkedIn