Number of constructions posts 7.1 percent growth in first quarter

1. Total number of constructions generated from approved building permits in the first quarter of 2017 reached 35,101. This number showed a 7.1 percent increase or 2,322 constructions from the 32,779 constructions recorded during the same quarter of 2016.

2. Residential constructions grew by 2.7 percent to 25,670 from 24,988 reported during the same period of 2016. Construction of other residential and apartment/accessoria with increases of 116.7 percent and 73.1 percent, respectively were the drivers of growth in residential constructions. However, decrements in number of residential construction were observed in residential condominiums (-50.0%), duplex/quadruplex (-41.2%) and single-type houses (-2.1%).

3. Non-residential constructions numbering to 4,997 posted a 28.1 percent increase from 3,900 recorded during the same period a year ago. This was brought about by the increases in construction of other non-residential (55.0%), industrial (39.8%), agricultural (39.1%), commercial (28.0%), and institutional (16.5%) constructions.

4. Addition to existing structures with 1,379 projects grew by 42.2 percent from 970 recorded during the same period of 2016. Similarly, alteration and repair of existing structures increased by 4.6 percent to 3,055 from 2,921 projects recorded a year ago.

Figure 1 compares the number of constructions by type for the first quarters of 2017 and 2016.

5. The top five regions in terms of number of construction projects accounted for 61.3 percent of the total. Region IVA (CALABARZON) topped other regions where a total 8,392 construction projects (23.9%) were located. Region III (Central Luzon) followed next with 4,485 constructions (12.8%). Other regions in the list of top five are:

• National Capital Region (NCR) with 3,050 constructions (8.7%)
• Region I (Ilocos Region) with 2,870 constructions (8.2%)
• Region VII (Central Visayas) with 2,710 construction (7.7%)

Figure 2 shows the distribution of constructions by region.

6. The top ten provinces accounted for 45.8 percent of the total number of constructions. Cavite with 3,725 construction or 10.6 percent share to total recorded the highest. Bulacan and Batangas followed with respective share of 5.6 percent or 1,973 construction and 5.0 percent 1,769 construction. Completing the top ten provinces with the most number of construction projects are as follows:

• Cebu with 1,581 constructions (4.5%) 
• Davao del Sur with 1,310 constructions (3.7%)
• Laguna with 1,234 constructions (3.5%)
• Fourth district with 1,222 constructions (3.5%)
• Rizal with 1,087 constructions (3.1%)
• Bohol with 1,084 constructions (3.1%)
• Negros Oriental with 1,079 constructions (3.1%)

7. Among the top ten provinces, Bulacan recorded the highest increase of 45.3 percent in terms of number of constructions projects to 1,973 from 1,358 in 2016.

Total value of construction up by 2.7 percent

8. Total value of constructions during the first quarter of 2017 amounted to PHP76.6 billion, an increase of 2.7 percent from PHP74.6 billion recorded during the first quarter of 2016.

9. Value of residential constructions estimated at PHP37.8 billion and accounting for 49.3 percent of the total value of constructions, rose by 4.5 percent from the PHP36.1 billion recorded during the same quarter of 2016. This was influenced by the increase in the construction value of other residential (139.9%), apartment/accessoria (38.2%) and single house (12.1%) constructions.

10. On the other hand, value of non-residential constructions amounting to PHP32.9 billion declined by 1.1 percent from PHP33.2 billion registered during the first quarter of 2016, despite the two digit increases in construction value for institutional (97.0%), agricultural (16.1%) and industrial buildings (14.6%).

11. Similarly, construction value of addition to existing structures estimated at PHP1.1 billion was up by 7.8 percent from PHP974.5 million recorded value during the same period in 2016. Alteration and repair of existing structures valued at PHP4.9 billion likewise increased by 15.6 percent compared with PHP4.3 billion recorded in 2016.

Figure 3 compares the value of constructions by type for the first quarters of 2017 and 2016.

12. Across the country, combined construction value of the top five regions amounting to PHP58.5 billion comprised 76.3 percent of the total. NCR which ranked third in term of number of constructions, consistently remained highest in terms of value of construction estimated at PHP23.8 billion or 31.1 percent of the total. Other regions in the top five are:

• CALABARZON with PHP16.5 billion (21.5%)
• Central Luzon with PHP9.6 billion (12.5%)
• Central Visayas with PHP4.7 billion (6.2%)
• Davao Region with PHP3.9 billion (5.0%)

Average cost of residential-type building is PHP9,605 per square meter

13. Average cost of residential building for the first quarter of 2017 was estimated at PHP9,605 per square meter, lower by 8.2 percent compared with previous year’s average cost of PHP10,465. This was brought about by the decreases in the average cost per square meter of residential condominiums (-23.5%) and apartment/accessoria (-10.0%).

14. Among residential constructions, single-type houses which recorded the most number of projects with 22,001 accounted for 85.7 percent of the total. Total value of construction for this type amounted to PHP21.0 billion covering a total floor area of 2.3 million square meters or an average cost of PHP9,087 per square meter.

15. Apartment/accessoria-type units ranked a far second with 3,269 projects or 12.7 percent of the total residential construction. This type of construction valued at PHP6.5 billion had a total floor area of 873.4 thousand square meters or an average cost of PHP7,420 per square meter.

16. Duplex/quadruplex-type dwellings came next with 327 projects or 1.3 percent of the total residential construction. Construction value for this type amounted to PHP0.5 billion with a total floor area of 53.5 thousand square meters or an average cost of PHP9,993 per square meter.

17. Residential condominiums numbering to only 21 units (0.1%) had construction value of PHP9.7 billion and total floor area of 683.0 thousand square meters, translating to an average cost of PHP14,155 per square meter.

Figure 4 displays the number and value of residential constructions by type for the first quarter of 2017.

Average cost of non-residential construction is PHP9,151 per square meter

18. Average cost per square meter of non-residential constructions declined by 14.9 percent to PHP9,151 from PHP10,752 recorded during the same quarter last year. This was brought about by the decreases in the average cost per square meter of commercial (-16.1%), industrial (-13.2%) and  agricultural (-8.9%) buildings.

19. Commercial-type buildings dominated all other types of non-residential constructions with 2,977 projects or 59.6 percent of the total. Construction value for this type was estimated at PHP16.2 billion with a total floor area of 1.6 million square meters or an average cost of PHP10,217 per square meter.

20. Institutional-type buildings followed with 954 projects (19.1%). This type of construction valued at PHP8.1 billion had total a floor area of 678.6 thousand square meters or an average cost of PHP11,965 per square meter.

21. Industrial-type buildings came next with 618 projects (12.4%). Total construction value for this type was estimated at PHP7.1 billion with total floor area of 1.1 million square meters or an average cost of PHP6,677 per square meter.

22. Agricultural-type buildings made up of 324 projects or 6.5 percent of the total non-residential constructions. Construction value for this type amounted to PHP1.2 billion with total floor area of 259.5 thousand square meters or an average cost of PHP4,548 per square meter.

Figure 5 shows the number and value of non-residential constructions by type for the first quarter of 2017.

TECHNICAL NOTES

CONSTRUCTION STATISTICS FROM APPROVED BUILDING PERMITS

Introduction

This Special Release presents the preliminary data on construction statistics from approved building permits for the first quarter of 2017, generated 60 calendar days after the reference quarter.

For this publication, data for Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi are not included in the tabulation as these provinces did not submit any approved building permit before the generation of preliminary tables. However, if any, these are to be included in the annual tabulation.

Data are presented at the provincial level by type of construction in Tables 1 to 7.  Data for the newly created Negros Island Region, comprising the provinces of Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental, are also included in this publication.

Scope and Coverage

Construction statistics from approved building permits relate to administrative-based data on new constructions and additions, alterations and repairs of existing residential and non-residential buildings and other structures proposed to be constructed in all cities and municipalities of the country in a specific period.

Sources of Information

Construction statistics are compiled by the Philippine Statistics Authority from the copies of original application forms of approved building permits as well as from the demolition and fencing permits collected every month by PSA field personnel from the Offices of Local Building Officials (LBOs) nationwide.

Limitations

1. Data on building constructions refer to those approved applications during the reference period and not to construction work completed during the reference period.

2. The completeness of the number of building permits collected relies on the approval of applications filed with the LBOs. Hence, private building constructions without approved building permits are excluded in the tabulation of data.

Geographic Classification

Building constructions are classified and presented by geographic area using the Philippine Standard Geographic Classification (PSGC) as of December 2016. The PSGC contains the latest updates on the official number of regions, provinces, cities, municipalities and barangays in the Philippines.

Industry Classification

Construction statistics utilizes the 2009 Philippine Standard Industrial Classification (PSIC) to identify the industrial classification of the structure proposed for construction through its use or character of occupancy.

Collection 

The number of building permit forms accomplished by the applicant comes in five (5) copies. The “NSO copy” of the approved building permit is made available within the first five (5) working days after each reference month. Collections of these documents from the LBO in city/municipality are undertaken by PSA field personnel within this period.

Collected documents for each month are properly checked as to its completeness by verifying the beginning and ending numbers indicated in the permit numbers. Missing numbers are indicated, with corresponding reasons, in the transmittal. In cases where there is no construction in a given month in a municipality, a certification that there was no approved building permit during the reference period is provided by the LBO to the PSA field staff.

Data Processing

Data processing of approved building permits is done both manually and mechanically. Copies of documents collected from the offices of LBOs are properly controlled, sorted, edited and coded, folioed and encoded in the PSA provincial offices. During machine validation, inconsistent and invalid entries which are flagged in an error listing are corrected in the data file. This process is repeated until there are no more inconsistent or erroneous entries found in the error listing. The data files are then forwarded to PSA Central Office for validation, consolidation and generation of preliminary tables. Data files received after the cut-off dates of submission set for each quarter are included in the generation of annual tables.

Preliminary results are based from data files that have undergone data processing in the provincial offices and have been validated at the Central Office. The preliminary tables are revised to include building permit documents received after the cut-off period in the annual tabulation.

Statistics Generated

Construction statistics generated from approved building permits provide monthly administrative-based data on building construction at the municipality level nationwide. Statistics generated are the following:

• number
• floor area
• type of construction
• value of construction

Statistical Tables

The statistical tables are presented at the regional and provincial levels by type of construction and by period according to form of ownership.

Unpublished Data

Aside from the preliminary tables posted in the PSA website, annual, quarterly and monthly statistical tables at the municipality level by type of construction and by form of ownership are available at the Industry Statistics Division of the PSA.

Other special tabulations may also be made available upon request, addressed to the National Statistician, Philippine Statistics Authority, 3^rd Floor CVEA Building, East Avenue, Quezon City.

Dissemination

Preliminary and final results of construction statistics generated from approved building permits are made public in the form of Quarterly Special Releases posted in the PSA website (www.psa.gov.ph) 65 calendar days after the reference quarter and Annual Special Release, eight months after the reference year, respectively. The Quarterly Special Releases are reports containing the preliminary results of construction statistics generated 60 days after the reference quarter while the Annual Special Release is a consolidated report of the quarterly preliminary data incorporating documents which are submitted after the cut-off dates for each quarter.

Definition of Terms (Adopted from the Revised and Updated IRR of the National Building Code)

Building permit is a written authorization granted by the LBO to an applicant allowing him to proceed with the construction of a specific project after plans, specifications and other pertinent documents have been found to be in conformity with the National Building Code (PD 1096).

Building refers to any independent, free-standing structure comprised of one or more rooms or other spaces, covered by a roof and enclosed with external walls or dividing walls, which extend from the foundation to the roof.

Construction refers to all on-site work done from site preparation, excavation, foundation, assembly of all the components and installation of utilities, machineries and equipment of buildings/structures.

Residential building is a building for which its major parts or more than half of its gross floor area is built for dwelling purposes. This type of building can be of the single type, duplex, an apartment and/or accessoria and residential condominium.

Single house is a complete structure intended for a single family or household, i.e. bungalow, 2-storey house, nipa hut.

Duplex house is a structure intended for two households, with complete living facilities for each; it is a single structure divided into two dwelling units by a wall extending from the floor to the ceiling.

Apartment is a structure, usually of two storeys, made up of independent living quarters, with independent entrances from internal walls and courts.

Accesoria is a one or two-floor structure divided into several dwelling units, each dwelling unit having its own separate entrance from the outside.

Residential condominium is a structure, usually of several storeys, consisting of multiple dwelling units.

Other residential construction consists of school or company staff houses, living quarters for drivers and maids, and guardhouses.

Non-residential building includes commercial, industrial, agricultural and institutional buildings.

Commercial buildings refer to office buildings and all buildings which are intended for use primarily in wholesale, retail and service trades; i.e. stores, hotels, restaurants, banks, disco houses, etc.

Industrial buildings are all buildings used to house the production, assembly and warehousing activities of industrial establishments; i.e. factories, plants, mills, repair shops, machine shops, printing press, storage plant, electric generating plants.

Institutional buildings are buildings which primarily engaged in providing educational instructions and hospital/health care; ports, airports and other government buildings; i.e. school, museums, libraries, sanitaria, churches, hospitals.

Agricultural buildings are buildings used to house livestock, plants and agricultural products such as barn, poultry house, piggeries, stables, greenhouses and grain mill.

Other non-building constructions include cemetery structures, street furniture, waiting sheds, communication towers, etc.

Addition refers to any new construction which increases the height or area of an existing building/structure.

Repair is a remedial work done on any damaged or deteriorated portion/s of a building/structure to restore its original condition.

Renovation is any physical change made on structures to increase the value, quality and to improve the aesthetic.

Alteration is a construction in a building/structure involving changes in the materials used, partitioning and location/size of openings, structural parts, existing utilities and equipment but does not increase the overall area thereof.

Conversion is a change in the use or occupancy of structure or any portion thereof, which has different requirements.

Demolitions refer to the systematic dismantling or destruction of a building/structure, in whole or in part.

Street furniture are street structures consisting of monuments, waiting sheds, benches, plant boxes, lampposts, electric poles and telephone poles.

Floor area of building refers to the sum of the area of each floor of the building measured to the outer surface of the outer walls including the area of lobbies, cellars, elevator shafts and all communal spaces in multi-dwellings. Areas of balconies are excluded.

Total value of construction refers to the sum of the cost of building, electrical, mechanical, plumbing, and others. The value is derived from the approved building permit and represents the estimated value of the building or structure when completed.