A total of 13,527 new homes were registered to be built in the UK in April – a 21 per cent year-on-year increase, reports the National Housing Building Council, NHBC.
Out of the new homes registered in April – 9,972 were in the private sector and 3,555 were in the affordable and rental sector. This compares to 11,218 a year ago, of which 7,427 were private sector and 3,791 affordable and rental sector.
NHBC chief executive Steve Wood said: “It is great to see another strong month for new home registrations. To date, there is little evidence that Brexit uncertainties are denting developer confidence, whilst the continued flow of inward investment into the private rental sector is another good sign of resilience.”
London sees boom in new home registrations
Seven of the 12 UK regions saw an increase, with London experiencing another considerable rise in registrations – up 61 per cent from 3,397 in 2018 to 5,475 in 2019. This was driven by growth in the numbers of larger developments and an increased appetite in the private rental sector. Also, the strong level of growth compared to April last year was partly due to the freezing weather conditions in the Spring of 2018.
Looked at over a rolling quarter, 38,496 new homes were registered to be built compared to 36,042 in the same February to April period last year. The private sector was up 4 per cent to 27,881 in 2019 versus 26,754 in 2018, with the affordable and rental sector up 14 per cent to 10,615 in 2019 compared with 9,288 in 2018.
Refurbishment Finance by HZA
Finance broker Hank Zarihs Associates said this was a reflected in the number of developers applying for construction loans and development and refurbishment finance.
NHBC registration statistics are a leading indicator as around 80 per cent of new build homes are insured with a warranty from the organisation.
