Number of construction
permits down 20 percent

Mount Lebanon drops 40 percent

in areas covered by permits

The number of construction permits decreased 20 percent in 2019 from the previous year to 10,991. These permits cover six million square meters (m2), a 32 percent decrease. The average area per permit is 553 m2, down by 16 percent compared to 2018.

The decrease was in almost all areas. Beirut was the exception. It recorded a drop in the number of permits, but an increase in total areas. This is because some permits were issued for large area projects in Beirut, according to Jad Tabet, Chairman of the Order of Engineers in Beirut.

Mount Lebanon, which has the largest share of the number of construction permits, saw the sharpest decline, with around 40 percent drop in areas covered by permit.

Around 3,700 permits were issued for new construction projects. The rest of transactions, accounting for the largest chunk of the total, were for amending or adding construction areas. Only few transactions of settlement of building violations were registered, according to Tabet.

Last year, Parliament ratified a law pertaining to the settlement of building violations occurring between 1994 and 2018.
“The decrease in the number of construction permits will continue, as construction material suppliers need fresh dollar lquidity and developers cannot provide it,” said Bassam Ziadeh, Chairman of Order of Engineers and Architects in Tripoli.