A report by the National House Building Council (NHBC) shows that the industry has reason to be optimistic in relation to housebuilding as registered homes to be built increases
28,724 new homes were registered to be built in Q3 2024, up by 40% on Q3 2023, which saw 20,449 registers for house building.
This also remains steady from Q2 2024, which saw 29,093 homes registered, a great increase from Q1 2024.
Cause for a cautious optimism in house building
In Q3 of 2024, 10 of the 12 regions in the UK saw a rise in registrations for house building, with the South East seeing the biggest rise of 84%, followed by Northwest and Merseyside at 81% and the North East at 78%.
The two regions in which registrations of house building dropped were London, at a loss of 50%, and Northern Ireland, at a loss of 29%.
The private sector also saw a large leap, with 19,879 registrations, an increase of 58% from the previous year. The rental and affordable sector also saw an increase of 12% from the previous year, with 8,845 new registrations.
“Stubborn barriers” still persist
Steve Wood, CEO at NHBC, said: “Our latest quarter’s figures show that new home registrations are holding steady with some signs of increased activity on site and an emerging mood of cautious optimism amongst house builders.
“A further uplift in registrations is needed to move us towards the Government’s 1.5M new homes target, with this dependent on continued easing of interest rates and a rise in confidence amongst consumers and investors. The funding pledged by Chancellor Rachel Reeves in her first Autumn Budget was welcomed and should, over time, have a positive impact on housing supply.
“Private sector registrations experienced something of an uplift in Q3, up 58% compared to the previous year. Rental and affordable registrations were also up, by 12%, but this belies challenging conditions for housing associations where capital budgets are focused on the remediation and retrofit of existing stock, alongside high spends on temporary housing.
“With house builders cautiously optimistic about growth prospects, we anticipate an upward trajectory for new home registrations in 2025, but with the health warning that the stubborn barriers in the planning system and around skills shortages must be tackled.”
