South Australia has recorded its strongest annual home approval figures in more than four decades, with new data showing more than 15,000 homes were approved over the past year as the state’s housing pipeline continues to gather momentum.
According to the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics Building Approvals data, 15,211 dwellings were approved across South Australia in the 12 months to June 2026, up 4.4 per cent on the previous year. The result marks the highest annual total since 1985 and surpasses the record set just one month earlier.
The figures also reveal 1,310 homes were approved in June alone, sitting 17 per cent above the state’s four-year monthly average of 1,118 approvals.
The latest milestone follows another strong month in May, which was one of South Australia’s biggest months for home approvals outside the COVID-era HomeBuilder boom.
The approvals add to an already strong housing pipeline, with recent ABS Building Activity data showing a record 14,130 homes were completed across South Australia in the year to March 2026.
“More than 15,000 homes approved in a single year is a result South Australia has not seen since 1985,” shared Acting Premier Kyam Maher. “Doing it two months in a row proves this is not an outlier, but a genuine pipeline of housing activity in South Australia.
“This doesn’t happen by accident. The Premier’s Housing Roadmap and our significant election platform are proof of a government committed to tackling the national housing crisis with genuine investment and reform.”
Housing and Urban Development Minister Nick Champion added, “The trend in this state is more homes approved, year on year, at levels a generation of South Australians have never seen.
“Faster code amendments and a simpler land division process mean projects reach approval in months rather than years. These figures are what that looks like in practice.”
The state government has set a target of delivering 13,500 completed homes each year as part of its long-term housing strategy, with approvals, construction and completions all trending upward.
While approvals don’t immediately translate into completed homes, they are considered a key indicator of future housing supply and suggest South Australia’s development pipeline remains at its strongest level in more than 40 years.
