Building approvals have increased twice as fast as predicted in May, as the volatile number of apartments approved surged in the month, official data shows.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics data showed the number of buildings approved rose a seasonally adjusted 2.4 per cent to 19,414 in May, just shy of a record-high.
The result exceeds forecasts by economists surveyed by Bloomberg, who predicted a 1.2 per cent rise in approvals during the month.
The figure is just below March's high-water mark of 19,419 approvals, which itself was an increase on January's previous record, after apartment approvals rose significantly.
May’s strong increase was driven by a sharp lift in 'other dwellings', which includes apartment blocks and townhouses, a volatile figure, representing the bulk approval rate for apartment towers.
The figure surged 16.6 per cent, in seasonally adjusted terms, during the month, to 9,954 dwellings -- exceeding the number of detached homes approved in the month.
The number of approved houses, plunged a seasonally adjusted 8.4 per cent in the May, to 9,265.
Over the 12 months to April, total building approvals were up 17.6 per cent on a seasonally adjusted basis, the ABS said, beating economist expectations of a 14.4 per cent increase.
Over the same period apartment approvals have surged 46 per cent, while approvals for private sector houses have dropped 2.3 per cent.
In trend terms, which strips out month-to-month volatility, housing approvals dropped 0.1 per cent in April but have still increased 18.5 per cent over the year.