More than 3,000 new dwellings approved in first quarter – NSO

During the first quarter of 2026, a total of 3,010 new dwellings were approved, registering an increase of 40.5 per cent when compared to the same quarter of 2025, the NSO said Thursday. Approved residential building permits and dwellings Building permits are authorisations to initiate new building projects. The objective of these statistics is to indicate the future development of construction activity in terms of the number of approved new dwellings. During the first quarter of 2026, 504 building permits for a total of 3,010 new dwellings were approved. When compared to the corresponding quarter of 2025, the number of building permits and approved new dwellings increased by 18.6 per cent and 40.5 per cent, respectively. The average number of approved new dwellings per building permit stood at 6.0. Approved new dwellings by type The majority of new dwellings approved during the first quarter of 2026 were apartments (2,171), followed by penthouses (459), maisonettes (245), terraced houses (107) and other residential units 1 (28). Apartments accounted for 72.1 per cent of the total number of approved new dwellings. Approved new dwellings by district When compared to the corresponding quarter of 2025, the number of new dwellings approved in Malta increased by 47.2 per cent, while those in Gozo and Comino went up by 6.0 per cent. The highest number of approved new dwellings was registered in the Northern Harbour district (1,080), while the lowest number was recorded in the Western district (213). Approved new dwellings by locality The highest number of approved new dwellings was issued for Tas-Sliema (322). This was followed by San Pawl Il-Baħar (171), Birkirkara (154), Il-Mosta (149) and Ħal Qormi (126).