Construction permits for new homes increase for ninth straight month in Sept.

SEJONG, Oct. 23 (Yonhap) -- The number of construction permits issued for new homes grew from a year earlier in September, marking the ninth consecutive month of such increase, the government said Thursday.

According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the number of new home permits issued last month came to 37,726, up 11.4 percent from the same month last year.

The rise, however, came mostly from an increase in Gyeonggi Province, which surrounds the capital Seoul.

The number of construction permits issued in the capital region jumped 36.7 percent on-year to 21,073 in September, with those issued in Gyeonggi Province alone spiking 65.4 percent on-year.

Construction permits for new homes in Seoul dropped 0.2 percent on-year while the number for the western port city of Incheon, also considered a part of the capital region, plunged 17.2 percent, according to the ministry.

The number of permits for the rest of the country dropped 9.7 percent on-year to 16,653.

Meanwhile, the ministry said the number of new housing units that began construction in September surged 56.2 percent on-year to 46,934, possibly reflecting a recovery in the real estate market.

The government has been working to revitalize the housing market, hoping it will bolster the national economy as a whole.

In the first nine months of 2014, the number of new construction permits jumped 24.4 percent on-year to 351,328, with the number of housing units that began being constructed also surging 17.7 percent to 329,538, the ministry said.

bdk@yna.co.kr
(END)