Completions steady at end of 2023 but new starts continue to fall

Housing completions remained steady in the final months of 2023, according to the latest figures from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC)

Approximately 39,650 homes built (seasonally adjusted) were built in the period from October to December last year, which was roughly the same level as the previous quarter. 

However, the figure was 15% down on the same quarter the previous year. 

New supply figures, meanwhile, showed a dramatic drop-off in starts, down 10% on the previous quarter and 51% on the same period the year prior. 

According to building control figures, work started on site for 19,080 dwellings (seasonally adjusted) across the period. 

It is estimated that figures, known as “indicators of new supply” because they do not cover the entire market, provides information on about 80% of housebuilding in England. 

A note to the data release explained the quarterly decline as the result of a rush to start work in Q2 as housebuilders sought to dodge new regulatory obligations. 

“Many house builders may have chosen to bring forward the start of project works to avoid the costs of complying with these new standards, and this has caused an unusually high peak in starts in 2023 Q2, and corresponding low levels in 2023 Q3 and Q4,” it said.  

“This makes it difficult to assess the underlying trend in starts this quarter and so it is not advised to draw conclusions from comparing this quarter directly with other quarters.”