THE NUMBER of building permits authorised in February 2014 stood at 409 compared with the 483 authorised in February last year; a fall of 15%, according to figures released by the Cyprus Statistical Service.
Compared with February 2013, the total area of these permits tumbled 53% to 77,636 square metres from 164,902, while their value fell 48% to €102,907 million from €196,751 million.
During February, building permits were issued for:
- Residential buildings – 274 permits
- Non-residential buildings – 71 permits
- Civil engineering projects – 27 permits
- Division of plots of land – 32 permits
- Road construction – 5 permits
Building permits for new home construction
The 274 residential building permits authorised in February provided for the construction of 229 new homes comprising 125 single houses and 104 multiple housing units (such as apartments, semis, townhouses and other residential complexes).
This is a drop of 58% compared with February 2013 when building permits were issued for the construction of 756 new homes.
Year to date
During January and February 2014, a total of 805 building permits were authorised; a decrease of 16.9% compared to the 969 permits authorised during the same period last year. The total value of these permits has fallen by 41% and their total area by 48%.
According to the Cyprus Statistical Service, building permits constitute a leading indicator of future activity in the construction sector.
