Planning Portal data reveals positive trend
Figures released by Planning Portal operator Terraquest have shown that the first quarter of 2025 saw more new home planning applications in England than in any first quarter since 2022.
Over the three months from January to March 2025 applications were submitted for 71,813 new homes – 22,037 more than in Q1 2024, representing a 44% increase.
Positive trends were seen in nearly all regions when comparing Q1 2025 with Q1 2024.
TerraQuest chief executive Geoff Keal said: “These figures are the strongest sign yet that England stands on the doorstep of a housebuilding boom. The intent is clear from both government and developers. But unlocking the door to a housing revolution remains a major challenge for everyone involved. Intent now needs to translate into action.”
Meanwhile, latest UK home statistics from the NHBC have found that private sector registrations rose by 62% in the first quarter of 2025 when compared to the same period last year.
During Q1 2025, 20,653 private sector homes were registered to be built against Q1 2024’s 12,747.
Registrations of rental and affordable homes saw a “modest” fall of -2% in the same quarter, when compared to Q1 2024.
In total, new home registrations were up 36% in Q1 2025 year-on-year to 29,356. This was a 17% improvement on Q4 2024.
And the number of detached houses and bungalows enjoyed the highest percentage increases, at 63% and 54% respectively.
Latest estimates from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) also found that new work has increased by 0.9% in the first quarter of 2025 when compared to Q4 2024.
Overall construction output in March 2025 grew by 0.5% in the month, driven by a 2.3% increase in private housing.
The ONS also revealed that total construction new orders grew by 26.6% in Q1 2025 when compared to the previous quarter, driven mainly by infrastructure new work and private industrial new work.
Vistry reports improvement in sales rate
The Vistry Group has seen an improvement in its open market sales rate over the past eight weeks, according to a trading update covering the first three months of 2025.
The developer cited better mortgage availability and affordability as being the key drivers, but did note that partner transactions have remained “relatively low”.
In the past eight weeks, the firm’s sales rate has averaged 1.32 sales per week per outlet against 1.17 in 2024.
In other news…
A study by the University of Sheffield’s School of Planning, commissioned by the wildlife charity Wild Justice, has found that developers are promising ecological features on their sites in order to secure planning permission, only to remove them later.
The study examined 42 developments granted planning permissions after 2012, spanning nearly 6,000 homes across five local authorities, and found that only 53% of the ecological features (such as bird and bat boxes, trees, wildflower areas) had been delivered.
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Office block developer Land Securities has decided to move into the residential market after saying it will not commit to any further office projects in London until it has secured the majority of its estimated rental value.
The firm will instead establish a £2bn+ residential platform by 2030, with first starts on site in 2026.
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