Executive summary
- The City of Windhoek approved a total of 244 building plans valued at N$ 179,165,469 in August 2022. See figure 1
- Out of 244 building plans approved, 169 were additions plans, 55 were house plans, 10 wall plans, 8 commercial plans, and 2 pool plans
- The number of building plans approved declined by 22% in relation to the previous month. See Figure 2
- During the month under review, a total number of 85 buildings were completed for Windhoek at the value of N$ 41,342,482
- Total buildings completed declined by 3.4% when compared to the buildings completed in July 2022
Analysis
- On an annual basis, the number of building plans approved for Windhoek declined by 10.9%
- Total building plans approved and completed declines for August 2022 could be ascribed to an increase in operational costs
- For the month under review, the highest number of building plans approved were from Windhoek suburbs with a total of 45 plans (22 addition plans, 20 house plans, and 3 commercial plans), valued at N$ 25,582,040
- Okuryangava suburb had the second highest number of building plans approved with a total of 22 plans valued at N$ 2,712,242
Outlook
- Over the last 3 months, there was a slight uptick in the number of building plans approved for Windhoek. This was mainly driven by additions displaying signs of improved activities and consumer confidence. Positive performance in corporate and household mortgages might also suggest that we might see an uptick in additions or new houses and commercial properties for 2022. However, the decline in building plans approved between August and July 2022 could be a result of an increase in construction costs and an increase in interest rates. We anticipate modest growth in construction activities in the short to medium term.
Figure 1: Monthly Building Plans Approved Vs. Buildings Completed, Windhoek (August 2021- August 2022)
Figure 2: Building Plans Approved Monthly % Growth Rates, Windhoek (August 2021- August 2022)