Urgent need for increased housing supply

Responding to official Government figures which show that the rate of new household formation in England is projected to be 223,000 per year up to 2026, Executive Chairman of the Home Builders Federation (HBF), Stewart Baseley, says:

“These figures provide an urgent reminder of the chronic shortage of housing this country faces. Young people are finding it increasingly hard to buy their own homes as the shortage of supply continues to fuel house price inflation.

“Government targets aim to raise annual house building in England to 200,000 by 2016, so today’s figures show that the current rate of 160,000 new home completions leaves a shortfall of over 60,000 homes per year.

“These projections show the critical need for local authorities to bring land forward for development and increase the flow of planning permissions so that house builders can build the homes we so desperately need. We need to provide choice and enable all parts of the market, particularly first-time buyers, to meet their housing aspirations.”