Two thirds of builders are seeing less demand for their services compared to the same time last year, according to the latest EBOSS Builder Sentiment Report.
The survey also says 38% are noticing an increase in the number of projects being put on hold, with 34% noting an increase in project cancellations.
The report is funded by the BRANZ Building Research Levy and is based on a survey over more than 650 NZ building firms.
It found that on average, building firms are operating at just 67% of capacity, down from a peak of 83% in 2022.
Worryingly, the number of building firms operating at 0% to 49% of capacity has more than quadrupled over the last two years, rising from 5% in 2022 to 21% in 2024.
The outlook is also grim, with 70% of the builders surveyed indicating they believe industry conditions will continue to decline over the next 12 months.
"Smaller businesses in particular are doing it tough," EBOSS Managing Director Matthew Duder said.
"Sole builders are at just 57% capacity on average, and companies of two to five employees are only at 63% capacity.
"These businesses typically focus on residential work, which has seen an earlier downturn than the commercial market," Duder said.
Looking ahead, the pipeline of work is slowing to a trickle, with the number of imminent building project starts down 64% compared to a year ago.
The full Builder Sentiment Report is available here.
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