Quake shakes confidence in major renovations nationally

For release: Immediately

7 April 2011

Quake shakes confidence in major renovations nationally

The latest Builderscrack.co.nz Tradesman Services Index, published today, showed that the average size of jobs completed by tradespeople fell 3% in March, after rising in 2% in January and a flat February. The index is seasonally adjusted, and based on the cost of trade jobs completed through Builderscrack.co.nz. It is now back at levels seen in February 2010.

“We have seen an increase in the number of jobs being completed, but the value of jobs declined last month. It is disappointing as it felt like the recovery was warming up in January” said Wyn-Harris. “It was a good summer for tradespeople in many regions, but the impact of the second earthquake has shaken confidence”.

“The results vary significantly around the country. We were seeing growth in Canterbury up until the second earthquake, but that has died right back as people wait for approval to get work done. The North Island tourist areas including Taupo, Rotorua and Tauranga were hit pretty hard last year, but have bounced back and been relatively resilient after a good summer boosted confidence. Auckland and Wellington remain relatively flat”.

Strong growth from the Canterbury region is expected as the rate of earthquake claims approvals picks up. “All tradesmen are hoping that the rate of claims approval picks up, as there is a surplus of tradespeople now, and there is likely to be a shortage in 6 to 12 months time. It would be good to smooth that out a little” said Wyn-Harris.

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