Private construction activity in the Philippines fell 12.7 percent year-on-year in November 2025 as approved building permits for residential and nonresidential projects slumped, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.
Data from the PSA showed building constructions totaled 12,281, down from 14,066 in the same month a year earlier and 13,732 in October 2025.
Residential buildings accounted for more than three-fifths of the total at 7,691, a 14.5 percent decrease from the 9,000 recorded in November 2024. The majority of these were single-type houses, followed by apartments and duplexes.
Nonresidential buildings dropped 9.7 percent to 2,854 from 3,160 last year. The PSA said most of these were commercial buildings, followed by institutional and industrial structures.
The addition of new construction to existing buildings, along with alterations and repairs, also declined. Addition projects decreased 22.7 percent to 357, while alteration and repair activities slumped 12.4 percent to 991. Conversely, “other” constructions—including demolitions and street furniture—rose 24 percent to 388 projects.
In terms of value, private construction in November totaled P40.2 billion, down 22.6 percent from P51.91 billion a year ago. Residential buildings amounted to P19.12 billion, while nonresidential constructions reached P17.51 billion. Both figures posted year-on-year decreases in value from P23.36 billion and P24.34 billion, respectively.
Additions, alterations and repairs, and other constructions dropped to P380 million, P2.72 billion, and P470 million, respectively.
Construction floor area in November totaled approximately 2.75 million square meters, a 28.7 percent decrease from the 3.86 million square meters recorded in 2024.
Meanwhile, the average cost of construction in November was P13,406.16 per square meter. This was 7.1 percent higher than the P12,517.15 per square meter recorded in the same month last year.
