Selwyn, Ashburton buck the building trend
Nationally the building sector has had a slowdown, with recent Stats NZ figures showing the number of new builds was down 3.8% in the year to May 2025.
But Selwyn and Ashburton have both experienced booms in recent times and now, after a plateau, the numbers are trending back up in both districts.
In the last 10 years Selwyn - which includes Rolleston and Lincoln - has had 14,647 new homes consented, an average of 1627 per year.
In the 2024-25 year, it issued 1378 consents, a 7.2% increase on the previous year.
Council director of development and growth Robert Love said that looking ahead to the current financial year, he is expecting growth to be 'higher than we have seen in the previous two financial years', but not near the peak years of 2020/2021 (1949) and 2021/2022 (2175).
In Ashburton, new home builds were up 25.9% in 2024/25, with 204 consents issued - higher than the 10-year average of 190.
New Zealand Certified Builders Mid-South Canterbury regional president Johnny Rive, owner of Ashburton-based J Rive Construction, said things are just steady.
'Ashburton seems to be ticking along regardless of what the rest of the country is doing.'
He said it wasn't a boom - which are not great for anyone.
'That's when prices go up, everyone is busy, and the work quality goes down,' Rive said.
'The spot we are in now, everyone has a bit of time to do the job the way it should be done, while contractors and suppliers aren't increasing prices.
'It's a happy medium as no one is undercutting each other, so everyone is still making the profit they need to without taking the piss.'
The price of land in Ashburton is a key difference, even compared to the nearby growth areas of Lincoln, Rolleston, and Christchurch, he said.
'People can't believe for $250,000 you can get 800 square metres sections in a new subdivision [in Ashburton] when they are spending at least $350,000 or more on something like that elsewhere.'
There are a number of multi-section subdivisions popping up, keeping the local builders in business as the town grows, he said.
And its not just Ashburton, with a large number of the new homes popping up in Methven and new subdivisions in Rakaia.
Rive also said he knows there has been an influx of people moving to the district from big cities for the more affordable housing options.
While Selwyn and Ashburton new builds increased, it was a different story for their neighbours.
Down in Timaru, there were 139 new homes consents in 2024/25, one lower than the previous 12 months, with a 10-year average of 187.3.
Timaru District Council building control manager Jayson Ellis said he believed that Timaru 'will not see any significant increase in new houses over the next 12 months when comparing to the last 2 years'.
Waimakariri District Council building unit manager Aaron Haymes said the district had 659 new builds in 2024/25, down from 770 the previous year, with a 10-year average of 692.5.
'Consent numbers have been steady and all signals from the sector appear to support a continuation of construction activity in the Waimakariri District at similar levels,' Haymes said.
Christchurch City Council head of planning and consents Mark Stevenson also reported a 4% drop, with the 2998 new build consents in 2024/25, down from 3124 the previous year, but both above the 10-year average of 2500.
'Annual consent numbers have varied [over the past decade], ranging from around 1,700 to 3,900 new homes.
'Assuming no significant changes in market conditions or demand for new housing in Christchurch, it is reasonable to expect that future consent levels will remain broadly in line with historical trends for additional housing,' Stevenson said.
By Jonathan Leask, Local Democracy Reporter
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