‘Cautious optimism’ among house builders as new home registrations rise annually
The National House Building Council said a further uplift is needed to move towards Government housebuilding targets.
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Your support makes all the difference.New home registrations jumped by 40% in the third quarter of this year compared with the same period a year earlier, according to an industry body.
Some 28,724 new homes were registered across the UK to be built in the third quarter of this year, compared with 20,449 in the third quarter of 2023, the National House Building Council (NHBC) said.
The latest quarterly total is in line with 29,093 new home registrations recorded in the second quarter of this year.
Within the total, 10,167 registrations in the third quarter of 2024 were for detached homes, up by 80% compared with a year earlier.
Some 9,373 registrations were for semi-detached homes, marking a 62% annual increase.
New home registrations are holding steady with some signs of increased activity on site and an emerging mood of cautious optimism amongst house builders
The report said 4,460 registrations were for terraced homes, up 30% compared with the third quarter of 2023.
Bungalow registrations increased by 48% annually, with 338 new homes registered.
But registrations for apartments fell by 18% annually, with 4,386 recorded.
The NHBC has a 70%-plus share of the UK warranty market.
Its figures indicate the stock of new properties in the pipeline because homes are registered with the NHBC before being built.
Steve Wood, chief executive 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 1.5 million 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.”
In July, the Government said all councils in England would be given new, mandatory housing targets to pave the way to deliver 1.5 million more homes.
Several major mortgage lenders have increased some of their rates in recent days, despite last week’s fall in the Bank of England base rate.
Higher swap rates, which are used by lenders to price loans, the changing outlook for interest rates, and the need to manage applications for competitive deals, have been suggested as factors in lenders’ decisions to move some rates upwards.
The NHBC said the South East, North West and North East of England have seen particularly big jumps in new home registrations.
Across the UK, there were 19,879 private sector registrations in the third quarter of 2024, up by 58% compared with the same quarter in 2023.
The rental and affordable sector saw more modest increases, with 8,845 registrations in the third quarter, up by 12% on the same quarter in 2023.
Mr Wood said the smaller uplift in rental and affordable home registrations “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”.
He added: “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.”
The NHBC’s figures also show 27,868 new homes were completed in the third quarter of 2024, down 9% compared with the third quarter of 2023.
Here are the numbers of new homes registered to be built in the third quarter of this year, and the percentage increase or decrease in registrations compared with the third quarter of 2023, according to the NHBC:
North East, 1,421, 78%
North West and Merseyside, 2,760, 81%
Yorkshire and the Humber, 2,013, 56%
West Midlands, 1,940, 61%
East Midlands, 3,274, 74%
Eastern England, 3,167, 65%
South West, 3,287, 73%
London, 1,334, minus 50%
South East, 5,153, 84%
Scotland, 2,432, 12%
Wales, 1,056, 3%
Northern Ireland and Isle of Man, 887, minus 29%.