New data released by NHBC shows that UK new home registrations increased by 25% in the first quarter of 2022 compared to the same period last year.
A total of 45,991 new homes were registered to be built in Q1 2022 compared to 36,665 in Q1 2021. The organisation says that this demonstrates the house-building sector’s commitment to respond to demand.
Private sector registrations were a key driver of growth with an increase of 31% to 35,134 (Q1 2021 26,773). There were also gains in the rental sector, up 10% from 9,892 in Q1 2021 to 10,857 in Q1 2022.
London bounced back to growth with a 51% rise in new home registrations in the quarter, whilst the other regions experiencing significant growth included Wales (+84%), East Midlands (+65%) and West Midlands (+52%). There were small dips in registrations in Northern Ireland (-8%), Scotland (-6%) and the East (-16%).
New home registrations rose for every house type with detached homes reaching a 20-year high of 16,090 registrations in Q1 2022.
New home completions saw a slight decrease of 4% from 33,222 in Q1 2021 to 31,874 in Q1 2022.
Commenting on the data, NHBC Chief Executive Steve Wood said: “We have seen a strong start to the year with a 25% uplift in new home registrations in the quarter, reflecting a reasonably buoyant new build market and strong forward sales.
“Material and labour supply shortages continue to be a challenge, but this is now being managed by housebuilders as ‘the new normal’.
“Inflationary pressures and the strain on household budgets may yet impact market activity, with this likely to be dampened by continued strong demand in both private sale and rental sectors.”
For more information on the latest figures, please visit www.nhbc.co.uk
