Residential construction in Bavaria is on the verge of a downward slide. In the first quarter, the number of housing permits fell by 28.9 percent year-on-year to 15,277. In absolute numbers, that was 6,216 fewer housing permits, as the State Statistical Office in Fürth announced on Friday. In rural regions, the phenomenon is much more pronounced than in urban districts, with a decline of 40 percent.
The number of building permits is one of the most important indicators for the future development of housing construction. The state office referred to the unfavorable combination of increased construction prices and increased interest rates for builders.
The figures confirm the assessment of real estate experts that, in addition to property developers and housing associations, many private builders have given up the idea of owning their own house or apartment, or at least postponed it: the number of approved single-family houses fell by 27.7 percent, and it was the case with two-family houses even a minus of 60 percent.
The decline was particularly strong in the Upper Palatinate with a minus of almost half, where only 955 new apartments were approved. The state office also recorded slumps of more than 40 percent in Lower Bavaria and Central and Lower Franconia. The decline was smallest in Swabia with minus 11.1 percent, followed by Upper Bavaria with minus 16.7 percent.
A total of 62,865 apartments were built in Bavaria last year, 3.3 percent more than in the previous year. This reflects the boom of previous years. Several years can pass from the approval of an apartment to construction, since not all builders immediately put their plans into action.