Housing Secretary promises plan within weeks
Housing Secretary Simon Clarke has pledged to “go further” to build the homes needed in the UK, but has said he won’t “impose cardboard boxes across our shires”.
In his speech at the Conservative Party Conference, Clarke promised to “build more houses and do so in the right way” – but did not confirm whether the Government’s previous manifesto ambition of 300,000 new homes a year remained in place, as PM Liz Truss vowed to abolish “Stalinist” local housing targets.
I want to reassure those hoping to get on the housing ladder that you remain at the heart of our agenda for Government.
SIMON CLARKE, HOUSING SECRETARY, CONSERVATIVE PARTY CONFERENCE 2022
In the coming weeks I will be fleshing out how we intend to get more homes on the market, and improve access to those homes.
Getting more people on the housing ladder, to give people security, a stake in society, and somewhere to call their own, is a fundamentally conservative goal.
Meanwhile, some local authorities can now lodge an expression of interest in the Investment Zones, announced in last month’s mini-budget.
Mayoral combined authorities, upper-tier councils and freeports have until 14 October to submit their interest.
Annual house price growth falls to single digits
Halifax have published their house price index for September, revealing that annual house price growth has fallen from 11.4% in August to 9.9% in September.
Pricing the average property at £293,835, the mortgage lender also stated that all nations and regions saw annual house price inflation fall in the month, with the exception of the North East.
House prices fell by -0.1% in September, with Wales remaining at the top of the national table for annual inflation, posting a rise of 13.3%.
Kim Kinnaird, Director at Halifax Mortgages, described the slowing of house price growth as a “cause of some concern for homeowners”, but urged that the market slowdown be viewed in the context of property inflation rates over recent years.
The unprecedented rate of property price inflation we’ve seen in recent years has been far above the historic average.
Kim kinnaird, director, halifax mortgages
It’s important to look at slower growth in this context – since the start of the pandemic average property values have risen by around 23%, with detached house prices up by more than £100,000 over the same period.
Construction output returns to growth, but new starts fall
Construction output increased in September for the first time in three months, data from S&P Global has revealed.
According to the latest Purchasing Managers’ Index, September saw the weakest trend for new orders since July 2020, but the industry posted an index reading of 52.3 in the month – up from 49.2 in August. A figure greater than 50.0 signals sector growth.
Tim Moore, Economics Director at S&P Global, identified the return to growth as being down to previously-delayed projects starting, and an easing of supply shortages.
However, data for the third quarter of 2022 from analyst Glenigan has revealed that the value of residential project-starts fell by a third against the preceding quarter.
Reporting from July to September, the data also found that social housing starts were down 36% over the year, with private housing starts reducing by 20% since 2021.
And, with further headwinds ahead, the firm sounded a warning to the industry.
The cost of imported construction materials and supplies is projected to continue creeping up in the coming months due to a weakening pound and higher than expected interest rates.
rhys gadsby, senior economist, glenigan
This will likely cause fresh challenges for the construction industry, suggesting that we’re not out of the woods yet.
New Homes Quality Code and ombudsman launched
This week saw the launch of the New Homes Quality Board’s code of practice, and the introduction of an independent New Homes Ombudsman.
The New Homes Quality Code puts “consumers at the heart of the new build process”, and covers all aspects of a new home purchase, from an initial visit to a sales office to the end of a two-year warranty.
The new code also bans high-pressure selling, requires developers to provide all relevant information about the home, and allows customers to engage a professional to carry out a pre-completion inspection of their home.
CIH president launches diversity campaign
The president of the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) has launched a campaign to highlight the importance of diversity in leadership teams across the social housing sector.
Lara Oyedele, who officially took over as CIH president at the start of the month, announced the launch of In My Shoes, which aims to challenge the lack of ethnic and racial diversity in housing boardrooms.
Drawing on her own experiences in the industry, the campaign will “provide a catalyst to galvanise positive change”, by sharing the experiences of others and amplifying awareness.
The campaign will run throughout Lara’s presidency, which runs from October 2022 to September 2023.
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