Over the last year, 57% of housebuilders increased the speed at which they built new homes. McBains commissioned the data consultancy VIGA to conduct primary analysis of over 400 housebuilders in the country.
A key conclusion is that housebuilders have predicted a rise of housing growth over the coming years but almost half thought that the central government target of 300,000 homes per annum by 2025 was achievable.
Typical responses were raised, including concern over land availability, the length of time taken for permission to be granted in many cases and skills shortages. Furthermore, VIGA reported that housebuilders estimate that roughly 20% of new homes will be affordable.
Clive Docwra, of McBain’s, highlighted concerns over skills shortages and uncertainty for European workers with the Brexit leaving process currently stalling further:
“The construction industry relies on thousands of skilled EU workers because of skills shortages in the domestic workforce, and with these workers potentially prevented from working in the UK after the Brexit transition period ends in 2021, many housebuilders will be struggling to find the workforce needed to build the new homes that are urgently needed.”
Housebuilder solutions to the concerns raised above included incentivisation from the government to encourage large construction companies to develop at a faster rate. This could be achieved by introducing a land value tax. In addition, the provision of loan finance for small and medium-sized developers would mitigate against economic barriers to development for such businesses.
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