Ireland recorded a sharp increase in new housing construction in July, with 3,028 homes commencing work during the month, according to figures from the Department of Housing.
The July total was 169 percent higher than the 1,125 homes that began construction in the same month last year.
More than half of the homes started in July, 1,612, were houses being developed as part of multi-unit schemes. A further 1,004 were apartments, while 412 were one-off houses.
The latest figures bring the number of new homes that began construction during the first seven months of 2026 to 18,974. That is 152 percent higher than the 7,539 homes commenced during the corresponding period in 2025.
The figure also represents the second-highest number of housing commencements recorded for the January-to-July period since the current series began in 2014.
Housing Minister James Browne said the figures showed continued progress following strong construction levels during 2024 and 2025.
A total of 85,723 homes were commenced across those two years, an increase of 43 percent compared with the combined figure for 2022 and 2023.
Browne said the Government had set ambitious targets through its Housing Action Plan and needed to maintain progress to meet demand.
“I want more homes delivered and thousands of people are counting on that progress,” he said.
Dublin accounted for just over a quarter of the homes that began construction in July, highlighting the continued concentration of development in the capital.
The latest figures come after strong growth in housing completions during the first quarter of 2026. Central Statistics Office data showed that 7,856 homes were completed between January and March, a 33 percent increase from the same period in 2025 and the highest first-quarter total since 2011.
However, the pace of completed homes slowed in the second quarter. A total of 8,823 new homes were completed between April and June, below the number recorded during the same period last year.
The Government’s housing strategy aims to deliver 300,000 homes by 2030, equivalent to an average of 50,000 completions each year.
That target remains challenging given that Ireland completed 36,284 new homes during 2025. Although the annual total was 20 percent higher than in 2024 and the highest recorded in at least 15 years, it remained well below the level required to reach the Government’s 2030 objective.
The strong rise in construction commencements during 2026 provides a more positive signal for future supply, but construction starts do not immediately translate into completed homes.
The pace at which projects progress through construction, along with planning, infrastructure and labour capacity, will determine how many of the newly started homes reach the market over the coming years.
