Construction time increasing for new homes

The period of time between the time a building permit for a dwelling is granted and the completion of the construction of that dwelling has increased in recent years. In 2002 the construction time was more than two years for 35 percent of new homes. In 1995 it was longer than two years for only 5 percent of dwellings.

Longer construction time for larger projects

The construction time has increased for large projects in particular. The increase was largest in the provinces of North and South Holland. Remarkably, the construction of houses takes longer in the VINEX and BoN municipalities than in other municipalities. This is partly because these projects are more extensive on average.

Sharp drop in completions within a year

The number of dwellings completed within a year is decreasing. In 1995, 46 percent of new dwellings were completed within one year of the permit being granted. In 2002 this had fallen to 20 percent. The increase in construction time is partly caused by longer procedures, including those for objections. This delays the start of actual construction from the moment the permit is granted. In addition the period between the beginning and the completion of the houses has also lengthened.

Construction time for new dwellings

More than half of large projects take more than two years

Seventeen percent of all projects involving just one dwelling took longer than two years to complete. For projects of 20 to 29 dwellings, this rises to 29 percent and for projects involving more than 200 dwellings it is as high as 57 percent. In 1995 these shares were 5, 4 and 10 percent respectively.

Construction time exceeding two years by project size

Longest construction time in North and South Holland

In the provinces of North and South Holland, 45 percent of all new dwellings took longer than two years to be completed, while 15 percent were completed within one year. In the province of Groningen these percentages were 10 and 46 respectively. The differences are partly caused by the fact that the projects are on average smaller in Groningen than in North and South Holland.

Construction time per province, 2002

Long construction times in VINEX locations

For the whole of the Netherlands, 35 percent of new dwellings required two years or more to be completed in 2002. In the VINEX municipalities 39 percent of dwellings took longer than two years, and in the BoN municipalities 40 percent. When corrected for the size of the construction project, the differences between the Netherlands and the VINEX municipalities are reduced. Therefore the longer construction times needed in the VINEX areas are partly caused by the size of the projects.

Bert Bunschoten and Cees Steijn