• The Office for National Statistics publishes various data about housebuilding in Northern Ireland, covering different sectors and periods of time.
  • According to the ONS, the total number of new homes finished in 2023 was 5,380 – the lowest number of completions since 1959, when the figure was 4,890.
  • Other recent years have seen similar numbers. There were fewer than 6,000 finished homes in each year from 2011 to 2015.
  • That contrasts with the six-year period covering 2001 to 2006, when over 13,000 dwellings were completed annually – with a peak of 15,560 in 2004.

In an article for RTÉ News published on 9 October, journalist Una Kelly wrote:

“[Securing] housing in the North is becoming increasingly difficult for many people. There is a shortage of homes. Housebuilding is at a 60-year low, and there is nowhere near enough social housing to meet demand.”

Is housebuilding in Northern Ireland at a sixty year low?

When considering the total number of new homes completed annually, covering all sectors – including private enterprise, council houses and social housing – this claim is supported by evidence.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) state that, in 2023, a total of 5,380 new dwellings were finished in NI.

That is the lowest number of newly-built homes since 1959, which was 65 years ago.

For more information, read on.

  • Sources

FactCheckNI asked Ms Kelly to point us in the direction of evidence that backs her claim.

She referred us to a BBC News NI article from February that includes a paragraph saying:

“Ulster Bank economist Richard Ramsey said that an examination of historical data from the Office of National Statistics suggests housing “completions” were at their lowest since 1959.”

She said further that she spoke to Mr Ramsey to confirm his analysis of the data.

  • Twin measurements

What does the official data actually say?

First of all, housebuilding statistics tend to fall into two broad categories: completions and starts.

The meanings of these terms are obvious but just to be clear: 

  • starts refer to the number of new dwellings where construction has begun within a given time period;
  • completions refers to the number of houses where building is finished within a given time period.

Both of these are valid ways to measure how dynamic homebuilding is within a region or country. Given that Ms Kelly referred us to data about completions, this article will focus on that.

And, of course, completions represent the point after which houses become actually useful to the housing market and public at large.

  • Data

The ONS has lots of data about housebuilding for the UK, with statistics updated every quarter and broken down by local authority area and by housing sector (such as housing associations or private enterprise).

This claim focuses on the big picture – total completions (covering private and social housing) in Northern Ireland by year.

At the time of writing, the latest dataset covering precisely this was published by ONS in August.

The figures state that, in 2023 (the last full calendar year), a total of 5,380 new dwellings were completed in Northern Ireland.

This is the lowest figure on record since 1959, when 4,890 dwellings were completed (1958 was also lower than last year, with 4,940 completions).

That is more than 60 years ago – meaning that this claim is supported by evidence.

  • Context

While 2023 does represent a recent low for new dwellings being built, that does not mean it is an anomaly. Other recent years saw similar numbers of completions. In the five-year period from 2011 to 2015, the totals ranged between 5,410 and 5,750.

By contrast, years where the number of completions was relatively high include 1971 (13,920), and the six years from 2001-06 where completions were consistently above 13,000, hitting a peak of 15,560 in 2004.

The graph below tracks the total number of new dwellings completed in NI by year, since 1949:

Figure 1 – source: ONS

Note also that housebuilding figures can be subject to change. The BBC News article from February stated that 5,379 new dwellings were completed last year – that figure has been revised upwards (by a single dwelling). The next update to the ONS figures is due later this month.