Statbel, the Belgian statistical office, publishes today the figures on building permits until December 2019.
Annual evolution
The number of permits issued for new residential buildings in 2019 has decreased by 4.8 % to 27,477 buildings compared to 2018. This decrease finds its origin in the Flemish Region and in the Brussels-Capital Region, where the drop amounted to 6.5 % and 12.6 %, respectively. In the Walloon Region, the number of permits issued for new residential buildings was 1.1 % higher.
Table 1: Annual figures - number of new authorised residential buildings + evolution compared to the previous period
| Belgium | Flemish Region | Walloon Region | Brussels-Capital Region | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 31,518 | 22,072 | 9,107 | 339 | ||||
| 2010 | 27,292 | (-13.4%) | 18,888 | (-14.4%) | 8,148 | (-10.5%) | 256 | (-24.5%) |
| 2015 | 21,916 | (-19.7%) | 15,514 | (-17.9%) | 6,187 | (-24.1%) | 215 | (-16.0%) |
| 2016 | 22,962 | (+4.8%) | 16,696 | (+7.6%) | 6,067 | (-1.9%) | 199 | (-7.4%) |
| 2017 | 22,764 | (-0.9%) | 15,964 | (-4.4%) | 6,591 | (+8.6%) | 209 | (+5.0%) |
| 2018 | 28,853 | (+26.7%) | 22,086 | (+38.3%) | 6,608 | (+0.3%) | 159 | (-23.9%) |
| 2019 | 27,477 | (-4.8%) | 20,655 | (-6.5%) | 6,683 | (+1.1%) | 139 | (-12.6%) |
| Table 1: Annual figures - number of permits for new residential buildings + evolution compared to the previous period | ||||||||
Monthly evolution
For the most recent month available, December 2019, building permits were issued for 2,322 residential buildings. Compared to November 2019, this is an increase of 7.2 %. The Flemish Region registered an increase of 15 %. The number of building permits issued for new buildings has decreased in the Walloon Region by 12.8 % and in the Brussels-Capital Region, this figure dropped to 7 buildings.
Table 2: Monthly figures - number of new authorised residential buildings + evolution compared to the previous period
| Month | Belgium | Flemish Region | Walloon Region | Brussels-Capital Region | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 1 | 2,121 | 0 | 1,552 | 0 | 559 | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| 2019 | 2 | 2,012 | (-5.1%) | 1,550 | (-0.1%) | 453 | (-19.0%) | 9 | (-10.0%) |
| 2019 | 3 | 2,483 | (+23.4%) | 1,903 | (+22.8%) | 565 | (+24.7%) | 15 | (+66.7%) |
| 2019 | 4 | 2,415 | (-2.7%) | 1,874 | (-1.5%) | 526 | (-6.9%) | 15 | 0 |
| 2019 | 5 | 2,090 | (-13.5%) | 1,535 | (-18.1%) | 550 | (+4.6%) | 5 | (-66.7%) |
| 2019 | 6 | 2,273 | (+8.8%) | 1,687 | (+9.9%) | 569 | (+3.5%) | 17 | (+240.0%) |
| 2019 | 7 | 2,551 | (+12.2%) | 1,874 | (+11.1%) | 666 | (+17.0%) | 11 | (-35.3%) |
| 2019 | 8 | 2,193 | (-14.0%) | 1,615 | (-13.8%) | 563 | (-15.5%) | 15 | (+36.4%) |
| 2019 | 9 | 2,462 | (+12.3%) | 1,860 | (+15.2%) | 596 | (+5.9%) | 6 | (-60.0%) |
| 2019 | 10 | 2,388 | (-3.0%) | 1,816 | (-2.4%) | 556 | (-6.7%) | 16 | (+166.7%) |
| 2019 | 11 | 2,167 | (-9.3%) | 1,576 | (-13.2%) | 576 | (+3.6%) | 15 | (-6.3%) |
| 2019 | 12 | 2,322 | (+7.2%) | 1,813 | (+15.0%) | 502 | (-12.8%) | 7 | (-53.3%) |
| Table 2: Monthly figures - number of permits for new residential buildings + evolution compared to the previous period | |||||||||
Long term evolution
Since 2007, the number of permits for the renovation of residential buildings was generally higher than the number of permits for the construction of new residential buildings. This changes briefly from the second quarter of 2018 onwards. From January 2019 onwards, the number of permits for the renovation of residential buildings is again higher than the number of permits for the construction of new residential buildings, but the difference remains small. From 2003 onwards, more permits are issued for new apartments than for single family dwellings. During the years 2010-2011, both were at approximately the same level, but in recent years the difference has been increasing in favour of the apartments.
New construction vs renovation Single family dwellings vs apartments
