Detached homes hit new high

New build registrations hit top level since 2003, reports Vicky Shaw

ore new detached homes were gistered in 2021 than in any her year since 2003, according industry figures.

In total, there were 153,339 ew home registrations in 021, marking a 25% increase on 020, the NHBC (National House uilding Council) said.

London was the only part f the UK to see a decline in egistrations in 2021, down 7% compared to 2020, due to combination of pandemic ffects and some hesitation on partment block registrations, ccording to the report.

At the other end of the pectrum, the North East f England recorded 74% nnual growth in new home gistrations.

The trend for people wanting gger houses which would elp them work from home was flected in a 47% increase in etached home registrations. Some 52,190 detached omes were registered in 2021 2003 when there were 52,534 detached home registrations.

Registrations for new apartments, meanwhile, dropped by 15% year-on-year.

NHBC chief executive Steve Wood said: “The housebuilding industry demonstrated considerable resilience in 2021, rebounding well from the pandemic and coping with significant strains in the supply chain.

“The pandemic has resulted in a real shift in the way people work and use their homes, with this likely to have some longlasting effects, as seen in the high demand for detached properties.

“Whilst there has been a clear drop in the number of apartment registrations, the ‘death of the city’ is over-stated and we expect to see these start to increase in the medium term, particularly with the continued investment in the build-to-rent sector.”

Homes are registered with the NHBC before being built – so its housing stock in the pipeline. The body has a 70% to 80% share of the UK warranty market.

In 2020, there had been 122,935 registrations, a total which was an eight-year low.

Last year’s total was still below the 159,500 new homes registered in 2019.

Private sector registrations were a key driver behind the increase in last year’s new home registrations, rising by 42% annually in 2021.

The number of new homes being registered in the rental sector decreased by 8% from 42,460 in 2020 to 38,862 in 2021.

This was in part due to budgets going towards putting building safety issues on the existing housing stock right, the NHBC said.

The number of new homes being completed in 2021 was also up by 21% compared with the previous year, the NHBC said. registrations across the UK in 2021 and the percentage change compared with 2020, according to the NHBC:

– North East, 7,467, 74%

– Yorkshire and the Humber, 10,543, 31%

– West Midlands, 13,737, 18%

– East Midlands, 17,313, 50%

–Eastern England,21,000,46%

– London, 12,272, minus 27%

– South East, 21,600, 18%

– Scotland, 12,599, 43%

– Wales, 4,171, 7%

– Northern Ireland and Isle of