by Alan Jacques
LAST year saw planning applications in Limerick fall by 9 per cent and commencements increase by 29 per cent as growth in residential construction slowed down.
Planning applications were up by 12 per cent nationally last year but Limerick was one of nine counties that recorded a fall in the number of applications from people seeking planning permission for new building projects.
The figures were extracted from the National Housing Construction Index, aggregated by consultancy Link2Plans from real time planning and project information in every local authority area.
Link2Plans managing director Danny O’Shea explained that the number of planning applications in 2014 increased by 1,399 from 12,040 to 13,439, representing an increase of 12 per cent nationally year-on-year.
“The positive sentiment in the residential construction sector which was initially only felt in the major urban areas is now beginning to radiate across the entire country”, he said.
“Overall, a combination of pent-up demand and increased confidence saw the residential construction sector in Ireland continue the recovery which began in the middle of 2013, with significant increases for the year in both planning applications ( up 12 per cent) and project commencements ( up 30 per cent) compared to the same period in 2013.
“Limerick city and county recorded an increase in commencements of 29 per cent, while, nationally commencements for the entire year of 2014 fell by over a half from the middle of the year, with the number of project commencements falling from 66 per cent to 30 per cent compared with the 2013 figures.
“While confidence in the sector remains strong, the data from the National Housing Construction Index indicates that 2015 may present a more turbulent year for the residential construction sector.
“Even though 2014 has seen growth across the sector, it is best described as a year of two halves, the first showing huge promise and the second slowing down to a trickle,” Mr O’Shea concluded.
