Construction grew a tenth in the previous year

The construction market which had shown a rapid growth in the last years, slowed down during 2007. It was mainly caused by the decreased demand for new dwellings. In 2007 building permits were granted for the construction of 9,000 dwellings which is about a third less than in 2006. Besides the increasing interest rates of settlement loans, the construction market was influenced by a rapid rise in construction prices, too.

The production of construction grew in Estonia as well as in foreign countries. The growth in construction production in Estonia was caused by the increase in building construction, construction of civil engineering stayed at the level of 2006. In foreign countries the construction of buildings as well as the construction of civil engineering increased more than a fourth.

According to the data of the Construction Works Register, the number of dwelling completions in 2007 was 7,232 — 2,164 dwellings more than in 2006. Like the trend of last years, three quarters of completed dwellings were situated in blocks of flats of which the most popular type of building was 3–5-storeyed block of flats. More than a half of dwellings completed last year had two or three rooms. The average floor area per dwelling increased a little compared to the previous year. In 2007, the average floor area of a completed dwelling was 79 square metres. The majority of completed dwellings were situated in Tallinn, followed by the neighbouring rural municipalities of Tallinn and the city of Tartu.

In 2007, the number of completed non-residential buildings was 1,097 with the useful floor area of 918,000 square metres. The useful area of industrial and commercial buildings increased the most. Compared to 2006, the useful floor area and the cubic capacity of completed non-residential buildings increased.

In the 4th quarter of 2007, the production value of construction amounted to 10.4 billion kroons, 9% more compared to the 4th quarter of 2006, of which the construction of buildings grew 6% and the construction of civil engineering 17%.

Change in construction volume index compared to previous year, 1998–2007 (percentage)