HBF boss warns housing supply is at “crisis” levels
The number of homes receiving planning permission in England fell to the lowest level for a decade last year, according to a report by the Home Builders Federation (HBF).
The HBF’s latest Housing Pipeline Report, which is based on data from Glenigan, shows 242,610 homes were approved in 2024. This is 2% down on the 248,383 approved in 2023 and a 26% drop on the figure for 2019 pre-pandemic, equating to a reduction of 85,000.
The number of approved sites last year was at a record low, with only 9,776 projects given the green light—the smallest total since HBF began reporting in 2006.
The rolling annual total of approved sites has now set new record lows for 11 consecutive quarters, underscoring the ongoing challenges facing the housing sector.
Neil Jefferson, chief Executive of the HBF, said the figures show housing supply is at “critical crisis levels.”
He said: “While we welcome the scale of the government’s housing ambition and the swift action on planning, the industry’s ability produce homes is being stifled by a range of issues outside of its control.
“Increasing housing delivery will require much more than just planning reform. Government has to address broader issues like financing for homebuyers and ensuring there are sufficient providers in the market to take on the affordable homes developers are building – and reduce the crippling levels of taxation being planned and imposed that are making development across swathes of the country unviable.”
The figures came as a separate dataset published today showed housebuilding construction activity fell in February for the fifth month in a row.
The S&P Global UK Construction Purchasing Managers Index showed housebuilding output had its steepest decline since 2009, notwithstanding the collapse caused by the pandemic.
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