Data released by the HIA on Wednesday showed residential building approvals at Kings Meadows had reached a value of $16.7 million in 2019-20 and $18.9 million at Legana.

There had been a population growth in that year of 2 per cent at Kings Meadows and of 1.8 per cent at Legana.

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The highest value of building work in the state was at Rokeby at $35.7 million with population growth of 4 per cent.

HIA state executive director Stuart Collins said there looked to be a record year ahead for detached house building starts.

He said starts had increased by 26.9 per cent compared to the previous year to reach a record of 3460.

"Australia's population growth has been constrained due to closed borders," Mr Collins said.

"COVID-19 has also seen consumer preferences shift away from inner-city apartment style living to detached housing in regional areas."

The housing body earlier this month reported the number of loans for Tasmanian owner-occupiers for the construction of new homes has almost tripled over a year.

The HIA said loans in the three months to April in Tasmania had gone up by 185.8 per cent compared to the same period last year.

There were 245 first home buyer loan commitments in Tasmania in April.

The rise in loan and construction activity has come at a time where housing unaffordability has increased in Tasmania for renters and property purchasers alike.

The Real Estate Institute of Australia recently reported the average loan size in Tasmania had increased by 10.8 per cent over the past 12 months.

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