Waterford leads the way for housing commencements in 2026

Minister of State for Planning & Local Government, John Cummins TD has welcomed news that commencement figures in Waterford for January 2026 are the highest in Ireland.

The Department of Housing. Local Government and Heritage today published the monthly commencement figures for January 2026 including the usage levels of modern methods of construction.

In January 2026, 2,046 units were commenced nationwide. This represents an increase of 73% compared to the same month last year (January 2025 with 1,183 units).

Of the 2,046 units commenced in January, 1,311 (64%) are scheme dwellings, 519 (25%) are apartments and 216 (11%) are for one-off units.

By Local Authority, the most units commenced were in Waterford City and County (409), followed by Meath County (307) and Cork County (159).

Minister Cummins said: “All partners remain aligned and focused on sustaining this positive momentum to increase housing delivery across County Waterford. The commencement figures for January 2026 are the highest since April 2024. This Government’s strategy centres on removing barriers, activating serviced land and equipping local authorities and builders with everything they need to construct homes at meaningful scale. While considerable progress has been made, we recognise that sustained effort is required and we are determined to build upon this progress. As the new national housing plan advances, we expect to see steady improvements each year and will continue to take decisive action to speed up the delivery of much-needed homes.”

The data sets published today also contain the main method of construction and main construction material used in commencements. This allows for the identification of where Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) are intended to be used. The latest data indicates a continued steady uptake of MMC, particularly the use of timber frame.

The full commencement data can be accessed here.