Tag Archives: housing
Land agent suggests UK govt target of a million new homes by 2020 is achievable
Land agent Aston Mead has hit back at those who have doubted the ability of the UK to build a million new homes by 2020. The pledge is at the heart of the government’s landmark Housing and Planning Bill, which received Royal Assent earlier this month. However, a recent survey of owners and directors of 389 house builders across England indicated that just over half, some 51%, thought the target would not be met. Aston Mead land planning director Adam Hesse said there is a danger that the planning pessimists out there will create a self-fulfilling prophecy. ‘A million homes by 2020 is perfectly possible as the Home Builders Federation have stated quite clearly. But it will need conviction and commitment, as well as further government policies in favour of development, and help to speed up the planning process,’ he explained. He pointed out that there have already been huge increases in output, with build rates on large sites doubling since 2010. There were more than 180,000 new homes delivered in 2014/2015, with this year’s figure expected to be higher still. ‘By 2019 the big companies will be building double what they did six years ago. Now we need to speed up the momentum even further, so that we ensure we reach the target of one million new homes by 2020,’ he added. Despite his optimism, Hesse believes that the industry needs to see more land coming through the planning system, and processes that support both large and smaller house builders. ‘Several significant advances have happened already. Brownfield sites will now automatically be approved for building, with £10 million worth of funding to help local authorities prepare them. There are also plans to relax the planning rules for smaller house builders, enabling them to gain automatic planning permission on suitable sites. And changes to the section 106 agreement will enable developers to provide affordable homes to buy, instead of affordable homes for rent,’ Hesse explained. He added that it is local councils, who are the largest landowners in the country, which will be key to the success of this project. ‘They must get up-to-date housing plans in place, ensuring that they are robust and evidence-based,’ he said. He also pointed out that councils should review their planning application process and the conditions attached to planning which represent such a major challenge for developers. Plus they need to streamline their planning processes and improve communication so that once approved, building can get underway quickly. ‘For their part, house builders are already investing in their supply chains and have taken on tens of thousands of new workers to ensure there is the capacity and skills required. All we need now is the conviction and commitment to carry it off,’ Hesse concluded. Continue reading
New homes sales in Australia bounced back in March after a decline the previous month
Total new home sales in Australia bounced back in March with growth of 8.9% following February’s sharp decline of 5.3%, the latest housing data shows. Sales of detached houses increased by 7% and sales of multi-units were up 16.3%, according to the new home sales report from the Housing Industry Association which covers the country’s largest volume builders. The data also shows that new home sales increased by 2.8% in the first quarter of the year but were 1.7% lower than the same quarter in 2015. It is another positive update for the residential construction sector, according to HIA economist Diwa Hopkins and she pointed out that the bounce in March has moderated the downward trend that emerged in the second half of 2015. ‘The current level and trajectory of new home sales and approvals provides a strong signal that new home building activity in 2016 will remain strong,’ she added. She also pointed out that a cut to the official cash rate will also provide additional support to the residential construction sector. A breakdown of the figures show that detached house sales increased in four of the five mainland states, up 13.2% in Queensland, up 9.8% in Western Australia, up 8.3% in New South Wales , up 2.8% in Victoria but down 6.9% in South Australia . Quarter on quarter detached house sales were up 11.2% in Victoria, up 5.8% in Western Australia and up 4.3% in Queensland. Sales declined over this period by 4% in New South Wales and down 5.7% in South Australia. Meanwhile, in an encouraging update for the new home building industry, data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) shows that a total of 19,371 homes were approved for construction in March this year, some 3.7% more than in February. Approvals rose for both multi-unit and detached homes, increasing by 2.4% and 5.1% respectively. Hopkins pointed out that despite the increase during March, the broader trend in approvals is that of decline from the record levels during the middle of last year. During the March 2016 quarter, the number of approvals was lower than in the previous quarter, by 1.6% and also 8.8% lower than 12 months previously. The HIA expects that the number of new homes commencing construction during 2016 to remain very strong at around 200,000, albeit less than 2015’s record of 220,000. A breakdown of the figures shows that during March total seasonally adjusted new home building approvals saw the largest increase in South Australia with a rise of 8.7%, were up 7.3% in Western Australia, up 6.9% in New South Wales, up 5.7% in Queensland and up 3.7% in Victoria but fell by 18.7% in Tasmania. In trend terms, approvals saw a 19% increase in the Australian Capital Territory and an 18.4% fall in the Northern Territory. Continue reading
New research reveals lack of affordable homes in London
With the average price for a property in London now exceeding £500,000 new research shows that just 46% of home listed matches this price or less. The analysis from fixed fee estate agent eMoov examined current stock levels across all of the major portals, recording the total levels listed for each London borough, before comparing this to the level of stock listed for £550,000 or less. The research then took the total stock under £550,000 and recorded it as a percentage of the total level of stock across the capital. The worst location for affordability was Kensington and Chelsea with just 6% of properties for sale at £550,000 or less, followed by Westminster at 7%, Hammersmith and Fulham at 14%, Camden also at 14%, Wandsworth at 22% and Islington at 25%. A further 13 of London’s boroughs had just 50% or less of its stock listed for the average price of £550,000 or under. The boroughs that did offer more for those with a budget of half a million were Hounslow at 57%, Bromley at 61%, Waltham Forest at 64%, Enfield at 65%, Hillingdon at 65%, Lewisham at 66%, Redbridge at 72%, Greenwich at 72%, Newham at 78%, Croydon and Sutton both at 79%, Havering at 84%, Bexley at 91% and Barking and Dagenham at 97%. ‘It’s no surprise to anyone that the majority of London is unobtainable to many from a property point of view. However, this research highlights just how out of reach the capital actually is for UK home buyers, even for those with the sizable budget of £550,000,’ said eMoov chief executive officer Russell Quirk. ‘For many the average house price is a benchmark, a mile stone, on just what they need to have in the bank to live in a certain area. But this average price masks the true cost of living in the capital or even where in the capital you can live for that matter,’ he pointed out. ‘When you consider that even with that sort of healthy budget, you would have to restrict your property search by removing more than half of the properties currently for sale in the capital, it really highlights how little £550,000 can get you in the London market,’ he added. Continue reading
