Residential construction is booming across Galway city and county, according to new government figures, which show the city is far ahead of rising national trends.
Galway city is exceeding early-year national percentage increases, whereas strong increases in residential building in County Galway are just above half of the national average growth.
The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage’s residential commencement figures show 120 housing units are in the pipeline in Galway city since the beginning of the year, with a further 181 across County Galway. These city commencement figures are the highest Jan to March stats since current records began ten years ago.
A commencement notice is an official notification that a person intends to carry out building work within 28 days. It is considered a more precise indicator of real building activity for actual housing provision than the number of often speculative planning permissions granted.
The Department notes a massive 87 per cent increase for Galway city compared to the same period in 2023 when only 64 residential units were commenced in January and February. In total, there were 282 commencement notices in Galway city last year.
Five one-off homes have been officially commenced in Galway city in 2024. This means the average residential unit number in a Galway city housing development so far this year is 38 homes.
The county saw a 40 per cent increase for January and February, compared to 129 units commenced in the first two months of 2023. The county accounted for 890 total residential commencements last year.
Forty-eight one-off homes have been officially commenced in County Galway in 2024. This means the average residential unit number in a County Galway housing development so far this year is 19 homes.
Across the country, 7,056 new homes were commenced nationally in a record-high first two months of the year, up 72 per cent compared to January-February last year.
