Australia’s seasonally adjusted dwelling approvals fell 3.4% month-on-month to a three-month low of 16,710 units in April 2026, easing from a sharp 10.5% decline in the previous month, according to preliminary data. However, the decline was steeper than market expectations of a 1.5% fall, indicating that elevated borrowing costs continued to restrain housing construction activity. Approvals for private sector dwellings excluding houses declined at a much slower pace (-3.6% vs. -25.7% in March), while permits for private sector houses fell 1.0%, reversing a 0.5% increase in March. By state, approvals dropped in New South Wales (-9.5%), Victoria (-3.9%), and Western Australia (-7.4%), but rose in Queensland (0.3%) and South Australia (4.3%). Despite the monthly setback, total dwelling approvals were 10.2% higher than a year earlier, accelerating from a 9.3% annual increase in March and pointing to underlying resilience in residential construction demand.