In the first quarter of 2013, planning permissions were granted for 2,308 houses, compared with 1,851 units for the fourth quarter of 2012, an increase of 24.7%, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).

The first quarter figures also show that:

• Planning Permissions were granted for 1,860 houses in the first quarter of 2013 and 1,420 in the fourth quarter of 2012, an increase of 31.0%

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• Planning permissions were granted for 448 apartment units, compared with 431 units for the previous quarter, an increase of 3.9%.

• One-off houses accounted for 33.5% of all new dwelling units granted planning permission in this quarter

• The total number of planning permissions granted for all developments was 3,275. This compares with 3,320 in the fourth quarter of 2012, a decrease of 1.4%

• Total floor area planned was 930,000 sq m in the first quarter of 2013. Of this, 42.4% was for new dwellings, 39.4% for other new constructions and 18.2% for extensions. The total floor area planned increased by 21.9% in comparison with the fourth quarter of 2012.

(CD/JP)