Building licenses increased in 2011

The total number of building licenses issued in the Palestinian Territory in the second quarter of 2011 increased by 14.7% to reach 2,015 permits, compared to the second quarter of 2010, Monday said a report by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS). However, the total number of building licenses issued for the second quarter of 2011 fell by 3.7% compared to the first quarter of 2011, added the report. According to PCBS, the area of licensed buildings (residential and non-residential) totaled 867.3 thousand square meters, of which new buildings made up 716.4 thousand square meters and existing buildings totaled 150.9 thousand square meters. The total number of licensed dwellings in the Palestinian Territory was 3,718, of which 2,972 were new units with a total area of 525.7 thousand square meters, and 746 were existing dwellings with a total area of 128.0 thousand square meters, said the report. PCBS reported on an increase in the number of new dwellings in the second quarter of 2011 by 48.2%, compared with the same quarter of 2010, along with an increase of 8.2% in the number of new dwellings in the second quarter of 2011 compared with the first quarter of the year.