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Housebuilding statistics show rise in starts
The number of new build homes started in the first quarter of 2016/17 rose 10% on the previous year, official government figures on housebuilding show.
The statistics, released today, show that 41,180 homes were started in England between April and June 2017 – up 10% from the same quarter last year but down 3% on the preceding three months.
Completions rose to hit 40,310 – a 15% increase year-on-year and a 2% rise on the previous quarter.
The official quarterly housebuilding figures are widely mistrusted, due to under-reporting and inconsistency with other government measures.
The Home Builders Federation, which represents volume house builders, rejects the numbers entirely, claiming that they fail to report 30,000 homes per year.
The government has even dropped them as the measure for progress against its target of delivering a million homes by 2020, with previous housing minister Gavin Barwell claiming the figures were an underestimate.
The net additions figure, released once annually in November, is the preferred measure for government. In 2015/16 it showed 163,940 new build homes, while the official statistics reported 144,090.
The official numbers also underestimate the number of homes built by housing associations by disregarding some Section 106 properties and homes built for market sale and rent.
Today’s numbers claim associations started 5,280 homes and completed 7,200. This compares to figures from the National Housing Federation (NHF), also released today, which reports 9,219 completions and 9,063 starts by the sector for the same period.
The official figures show the highest number of starts and completions in a first quarter since 2008/9, but still below pre-credit crunch figures.
Alok Sharma, housing minister, said: “Building more homes is an absolute priority for this government. Today’s figures are proof that we are getting Britain building again, with new housing starts reaching record levels since 2009."