New housing starts fall 48%

House building figures for the three months to the end of September have been released by the Department of Communities and Local Government.

The statistics show that new housing starts in England stood at an estimated 22,200, with the seasonally adjusted figure down 33% of the previous three months and 48% lower than a year earlier.

During the three months to the end of September, the annual decline in housing starts for England continued, taking the number of properties begun between 1st October 2007 and 30th September 2008 to 126,700, down 26% on the previous 12 months and 31% below their peak, in 2005/06.

Work on new properties for registered social landlords rose 20% year-on-year during the third quarter of 2008; whereas private enterprise housing starts were down 55% on a year earlier.

Housing completions in England exceeded starts for the fourth consecutive quarter but nevertheless fell during the three months to the end of September, to an estimated 33,300.

The seasonally adjusted figure is down 10% on the three months to the end of June and 18% lower than in the third quarter of 2007.

In the year to the end of September, housing completions in England totalled 154,300, down by 9% on the 12 months to the end of September 2007.

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