Over the past 20 years, an average of around 75,500 housing construction starts were recorded in May. The current number of 43,200 housing starts is around 42%, or more than 31,000 units, lower than that. The five-year comparison also highlights the sharp drop: Since 2020, at least 63,000 new housing construction starts were recorded in May each year – a lot more than this year.
So far, the year 2025 has been characterized by strong fluctuations. A weak start to the year was followed by a significant increase in March to the highest monthly figure since 2007 (See article Housing construction starts at the highest level since 2007). Since then, however, Statistics Japan has reported substantial decreases: In April, the number fell by 37% month on month, and in May, it was down by another 23%.
Cumulatively, too, a historic low was reached: 306,000 housing construction starts in the first five months represent the lowest number in 20 years.
