Housebuilding falls to lowest level since covid-19 lockdown, says NHBC

The latest statistics from National House Building Council (NHBC) reveal that housebuilding has dropped to the lowest levels since covid hit.

In the third quarter of this year, new home registrations dropped by more than half (53%) in comparison to the same three-month period in 2022.

The NHBC figures also show that the number of homes completed dipped 15% in Q3 this year, compared with the three months to September 2022.

The figures show new-build homes registered for the NHBC’s 10-year warranty. The NHBC covers 70-80% of new homes in the UK.

Of the 20,680 new homes registered in July, August and September this year, 13,429 were private sector and 7,251 were affordable or build-to-rent.

The last time registrations were around the 20,000 mark was in Q2 2020, when the industry was all but closed by the covid-19 lockdown.

In the three months to September this year, private sector home registrations were down 57% year-on-year, with rental and affordable registrations down 43% compared with the same period a year ago.

Steve Wood, NHBC’s chief executive officer, blamed the slowdown on economic conditions.

“With stubbornly high interest rates, persistent inflationary pressures, an ineffective planning system and an increasingly complex regulatory environment, it is no surprise fewer homes are being built,” he said.

All UK regions saw a fall in new house registrations, apart from Northern Ireland which bucked the trend with a 52% uplift in registrations (1,258 in Q3 2023 compared with. 826 in Q3 2022). 

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Only 228 bungalows were registered this quarter, down 70% on the same period last year and the lowest figure recorded by the NHBC in 80 years.

Semi-detached homes saw the greatest number of registrations by house type, at 5,919 in Q3 2023 followed by detached homes (5,735) and apartments (5,393) respectively. 

Meanwhile, data firm Glenigan reported that in the three months to the end of October this year residential starts fell significantly, down 30% on 2022 levels and 23% down on the previous quarter. 

The Glenigan November Index also revealed that value of work commencing fell by a quarter compared with the previous three months, finishing 35% lower than 2022 levels.