Statistical presentation

Data description

The construction activity statistics is register based statistics of all building activities requiring a building permit. The statistics is based on the municipalities' reports to the The Central Register of Buildings and Dwellings (BBR), in cases where construction of new buildings or extension/conversion of existing building increase the the floor area or number of dwellings. This means, that building activities, which do not result in an increase in the floor area or number of dwellings, e.g. demolition and modernization, not is included in the statistics. The scope and the demands for the information to be reported to BBR are defined by public authorities. Due to delays in the municipalities reporting to the register both non-adjusted figures as well as figures adjusted for delays in reporting are published.

The construction statistics for non-adjusted figures are published as quarterly time series, measured as activity in total floor area (m2) and total number of dwellings. The statistics are grouped by phase of construction, building use, type of builder, type of building project and geography. The statistics - in principal figures and without geography - goes back to 1981/82.

The statistics for adjusted figures is also published quarterly, but in monthly time series and without geography. This time series are published with and without seasonal adjustment and goes back to 1998.

Classification system

Codes used in the construction acctivity statistics are consistent with the codes in The Central Register of Buildings and Dwellings (BBR) in Denmark, but are grouped for statistical purposes. The geospatial grouping for these statistics are made according to Regions, provinces and municipalities.

Use of buildings

Use of buildings are grouped differently for statistics on total floor area and the number of residential construction. Statistics on total floor area are grouped by:

• Residential buildings (code 110 to 190)
• Production, administration etc. (code 210 to 390)
• Other buildings (code 410 to 930)

Statistics on the number of residential construction are grouped by:

• One-family houses (code 110 to 130)
• Multi-dwelling houses (code 140)
• Other buildings (code 150 to 930)

Prior to August 31, 2016 there were (partially) different codes for the use of buildings and for the use of units. As of August 31, 2016 the code sets were unified and made more detailed with a number of new codes.

The implementation of the new codes will take a number of years. One reason is that all commercial buildings must be re-registered in the BBR. Until the new codes are fully implemented, the old code set will be used with a few exceptions. Read more about what this change means for the statistics under Comparability over time.

Builders

Private builders: Code 10, 30, 40, 41 90 (private persons, private co-operative societies, companies and the like, plus others.

• 10 Individuals inclusive partnerships
• 30 Limited liability company, etc.
• 40 Societies, independent institutions
• 41 Housing societies
• 90 Freehold flats and others

Housing societies

• 20 Non-profit building society

Public builders

• 50 Municipality of position
• 60 Other municipality
• 70 Region
• 80 State

Type of building case

• New building
• Extension
• Conversion

Phase of construction

• Construction of building permitted
• Construction of building started
• Building under construction
• Construction of building completed

The table LABY37 uses the municipality groups classification, which divides Denmark's municipalities into five groups based on the number of inhabitants in the largest city in the municipality and accessibility to jobs, respectively.

Sector coverage

The construction sector.

Statistical concepts and definitions

Phase of construction: The phase of construction is an expression of the stage of construction. The stages are divided into the following phases:

• Building permits: The permit given by the municipality for starting a construction within a given period. The building permit will be annulled, if the construction is not started within a year. Some construction did not require a building permit, but only a notification. In a statistical context, the building permit and the notification are considered to be the same.

• Start of construction: The date for the physical start of the construction. For non-residential buildings used for agricultural purposes etc. and small buildings (garages, carports and outhouses) the date of the building permit and the date of the construction started are similar. This kind of building is treated less strictly according to the Act.

• Completion of construction: A certificate for use or provisional use is given or for reasons where the construction is completed and no certificate is needed.

• Under construction: A building stock of building activities, which have started but not yet completed at a certain time (normally, at the end of the reference period).

Central variables: In the Central Register of Buildings and Dwellings each building permit has several variables with information. The most important variables are:

• Main use of the building: The actual use is registered. If the building is used for several purposes, the use accounting for the greatest space is registered. The classification has 5 classes and 27 objects. The classes are residential buildings (weekend cottages excluded), production buildings, warehouses, farm buildings, industry and manufacturing buildings, public works etc., buildings for administration and trade, transport, personal services, buildings for cultural purposes plus institutions and other buildings.
• Type of builders: Private, housing societies and public builders (determined by the ownership).
• Construction materials: external cladding, type of roof and type of heating.
• Geography: Counties/Regions and municipalities.

Population: - Property/Site (= land register) - Building - Unit in Building

In the "old" BBR, the property unit identifies the public tax assessment of real property. In the changed BBR "property" is replaced by site and ownership as the superior identification. The building is defined as a coherent construction built on a separate real property, and which is mainly constructed using uniform materials and with approximately the same number of floors. Furthermore, there must be entrance facilities from the street. A unit in a building is defined as one or several coherent rooms etc. used for residential or non-residential purposes. It is decisive that the unit can be independently addressed.

Statistical unit

The counting unit is the building, measured as:

• Total floor space: All floor space, incl. roof space, but excl. basement (all areas are measured to the outside of the external wall or to limited roof area).
• Ground space (area built on): Equal to the ground floor space
• Number of dwellings: The sum of dwellings with kitchen and individual rooms for habitation - the dwellings shall be approved for habitation

Statistical population

The population consist of the construction activities, which demands a building permits. The construction activities can be new construction, bigger extensions and conversions and demolitions. The statistics include only building cases/permits which include a supply of area and/or dwellings, that means demolitions are not included.

Reference area

Denmark.

Time coverage

Total construction:

• 1982 and onwards

Dwelling construction:

• 1981 and onwards

Base period

Not relevant for these statistics.

Unit of measure

The units of measure are:

• Total floor space (square meters)
• Number of dwellings

Reference period

The time of reference is the quarter.

Frequency of dissemination

The statistics are published quarterly.

Legal acts and other agreements

Section 8 of the Act on Statistics Denmark secures the legal ground for collecting the data. The statistics fall under Council Regulation (EU) no. 1165/98 of 19 May 1998 and no. 1893/2006 of 20 December 2006 regarding short-term-statistics.

Cost and burden

These statistics are based on administrative data. There is thus no direct response burden, in relation to the compilation of these statistics.

Comment

Other information about the construction activity statistics can be found on the homepage of the statistics or received by addressing Statistics Denmark.