HIA economist Diwa Hopkins said residential building approvals reached 170,586 in the 12 months to October, a 19.1 per cent increase on the same period in 2012 when the recovery in new housing was just emerging.

"The bulk of the growth has been driven by an increase in apartment approvals, which have nearly doubled for the corresponding period last year," Ms Hopkins said.

"The move is towards apartment building compared to the lower density or detached housing part of the market, which has really suffered over the past few years."

HIA chief economist Harley Dale said Queensland, which was previously the weakest new home building market, overtook Western Australia as the second-largest contributor to aggregate growth in approvals.

"At the beginning of this year NSW and WA were the only two of the states and territories that were growing, and at the end of the year you've got five of eight that are expanding so it is certainly a move in the right direction," he said.

Source: The Australian