According to the data from the Orders of Engineers in Beirut and Tripoli, the total construction permits witnessed a year-on-year (YOY) remarkable increase of 189.84% to reach 5,249 permits by May 2021. Notably, the Construction Area Authorized by Permits (CAP) soared by an annual 331.26% to 2,800,898 square meters (sqm), mainly reflecting the high interest of investors in undertaking new projects and investing in the real economy.
Compared to the same period last year, construction activity witnessed a prominent increase regionally. Across the governorates, South, grasped 31.78% of the total permits, and accounted for 1,668 permits compared to 411 by May 2020. However, for the Mount Lebanon, it constituted 34.24% of the total permits, its respective number of permits reached 1,797 permits comparing to 758 permits same period last year. In Nabatieh, 19.24% of the total permits, permits accounted for 1,010 compared to 257 permits by May 2020. In Bekaa, 499 construction permits were issued by May 2021 up from 150 in the same period last year, while in Beirut only 84 construction permits were issued down from 95 issued last year.
The data above reflects the level of supply in the real estate sector. In fact, Beirut is still the only Governorate with a decrease in its construction permits. However, the rise in percentages may be attributed to the fact that many developers have been rushing to obtain construction permits and accordingly benefit from the relatively low fees which are still priced at the official exchange rate.
Number of Construction Permits by May
Source: Orders of Engineers in Beirut and Tripoli, BLOMINVEST