The number of new houses built in Co Louth last year may be much less than the Government previously estimated, according to new figures from the Building Control Management System.
Government estimates reckon that there were 361 new houses completed in Co Louth in 2016.
However, the BCMS figures, which remove one-off builds, claims that there were just 24 estate houses and apartments completed in the Wee County last year. This compares with the official Department of Housing estimate of 211.
Nationwide the BCMS figures claim there were just 848 estate houses and apartments built compared with the Government estimate of 8,729.
The discrepancy stems from the department’s use of ESB metering data as a proxy to count new builds. Electricity connections can be triggered by work to existing buildings or by formerly vacant units coming back on stream.
The official figures are also likely to have been inflated by the finishing out of so-called ghost estates built during the boom.
The Department of Housing has repeatedly defended its use of the 14,932 completion figure, suggesting electricity connections have been used as a proxy for completions since the 1970s, as developers would not connect a property to the grid until it is ready for sale.
It also claims the Building Control Management System database is not an accurate measure of homebuilding activity as it was only established in 2014 and may fail to capture projects commenced prior to that.