Sector reacts to surprise news as Labour announces ‘new towns’ plan
The housing industry has welcomed Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s announcement that a general election will be held on 04 July.
As reported in Housebuilder magazine, Stewart Baseley, Executive Chairman of the Home Builders Federation, said that his firm would be “ready to work with ministers of whichever party immediately after the election to help reverse declining housebuilding numbers,” and called upon “a positive approach to policy and regulation” to overcome the “significant barriers to housing delivery”.
David Thomas, Chief Executive Officer of Barratt Developments, said: “We look forward to seeing positive policies from all parties aimed at increasing housebuilding, supporting people onto the property ladder and helping the industry to build strong sustainable communities.”
Lucian Cook, Head of Residential Research for Savills, noted that Labour’s recently-announced ambition to deliver 1.5 million homes over the next five years is “high up its political agenda”.
Indeed, earlier this week Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner announced details of her party’s new towns policy, which would feature sites with 40% affordable housing.
Speaking at the UKREiiF event in Leeds, Rayner also stated that developments under the New Towns Code must be delivered with good links to towns and city centres, as well as close to transport and public services.
Inspired by places such as Hale in Manchester and Roundhay in Leeds, Rayner also added that she expects homes to be completed on new town sites within Labour’s first term in government.
Meanwhile, the Housing Forum called on policymakers to focus on housing during the election campaign, highlighting the fact that poor housing “causes homelessness, damages health and reduces opportunities in life”.
The Housing Forum urges party manifestos to support delivery and action to increase housing supply, improve quality, safety and sustainability, and ensure affordable housing and choice for all.
We are calling for a Housing Accelerator Fund – this year – to tackle the affordable housing backlog.
Stephen Teagle, Chair of the Board, The Housing FOrum
This would be a £4bn fund to provide 60,000 new affordable rented homes to reduce homelessness by more than half over three years and slash expenditure on temporary accommodation.
House prices reach a new record – Rightmove
Housing website Rightmove has reported a 0.8% increase in property prices in May, bringing the average value in Great Britain to just above £375,000 – a new record.
The firm also forecasts that house prices will “hold steady over the next few months”, now a general election date has been set.
More people are listing homes for sale in 4-bed detached and 5+ bedroom properties, after pausing moving plans in previous years.
Meanwhile, the Office for National Statistics has reported a 1.8% increase in house prices over the twelve months to March 2024, up from a decrease of -0.2% in the twelve months to February.
Over the year to March, average house prices increased by 1.0% in England, 1.3% in Wales, and 6.7% in Scotland. Average house prices increased by 4.0% in the year from January to March in Northern Ireland.
Housing View 