The National House-Building Council said the number of new house starts in the UK’s private sector has fallen to its lowest level since its accessible records began.
NHBC figures for August reveal applications were down 76% from a year ago to 3,720. Statistics for the three months to August showed the number of house starts had more than halved on a year before at 25,097.
Housing association figures revealed an 8% increase in applications for social housing properties at 10,432. Additional figures showed average daily sales of new homes is now 21% down on a year ago at 458.
A NHBC spokesperson said: “Year-to-date figures show there has been a 48% reduction in the number of applications by the private sector. However, the social housing sector is currently showing more resilience to the downturn with starts 6% lower.”
