3,817 apartment units have been approved in 2021 so far, a spokesperson for the Planning Authority confirmed with The Malta Independent.
This number covers the period between the beginning of January till the end of July.
471 maisonettes were also approved, as were 156 terraced houses. In terms of bungalows, farmhouses and villas, 67 were approved.
In total, this adds up to 4,511 dwelling units (the total of all the aforementioned forms of housing units approved).
The statistics provided by the Planning Authority also includes data which goes back as far as the year 2000, giving an insight into the number of approved dwelling units in the country over the years. Between the years 2000 and 2007, the amount of such dwelling units being approved each year was on a constant rise, from 3,970 being approved in 2000, to 11,343 being approved in 2007. The majority of these approved units were apartments.
2008 then saw a dip.
One must keep in mind that the financial crisis hit in 2008, which is likely a contributing factor to the decrease in numbers.
In 2008, 6,836 dwelling units were approved. The yearly number of such approved units continuously declined between 2008 and 2013, when the numbers reached a low of 2,707 (the lowest amount of all the years).
The number of such yearly approved units then began to rise again, reaching a peak in 2018, when 12,885 dwelling units were approved. Of this number, 11,211 were apartment units. 2019 also saw a high number of dwelling units approved (12,485).
In 2020, 7,831 dwelling units were approved, of which 6,737 were apartments. The Covid pandemic had emerged in Malta in early 2020, which is likely a factor in this drop.
If one were to add up all the apartment units approved since the year 2000, the number totals a staggering 119,366. 15,589 maisonette units were also approved, as were 6,054 terraced houses. One can also clearly see that far fewer bungalows, farmhouses and villas are being applied for. The total number of such units approved since the year 2000 stands at 3,704. These 2000 – 2021 period totals are a simple addition of the number of new units that were approved by the Planning Authority each year and, for example, do not take into consideration whether a new apartment unit approved in 2020 is replacing one that was built or approved in 2000.