A significant increase in the number of consented housing projects in Auckland that do not get built over the next couple of years is possible. Most residential building projects take about two years to complete once a building consent is issued. That suggests building consents have been a very good indicator of future building activity. While that is a possibility, it seems unlikely because the overall housing market is in the doldrums and residential building consents have started trending down, indicating a weakening in developers' intentions. Which suggests we are likely to start seeing a significant number of consented building projects in Auckland being put on hold.
