No surprise from the Christchurch Mayor, that construction is booming in Canterbury

The region's councils consented six-and-a-half thousand homes in the year to November - a fifth of the country's new builds.

The number of consents in Christchurch was also triple Wellington's.

Phil Mauger says there's been a billion-dollars worth of new homes built in Christchurch - half being units, townhouses or apartments.

He says they're aiming for 20-thousand more people in the central city.