FIRST-TIME buyers are facing a massive blow as the number of new-build housing developments coming to market is at its lowest level in almost a decade.
Worrying new analysis by Rightmove has found there were fewer developments coming onto the market in May than anytime since January 2017.
That’s despite the Government setting a target of building 1.5million homes by 2029, which it said would help first-time buyers.
Rightmove said it had tracked for-sale listings on its platform for more than 10 years, looking at whole developments rather than individual homes or plots.
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Across the entire market, which includes new and existing homes, the number of properties for sale was up by 85% compared with four years ago.
But a shortage of new-build properties means there is less opportunity for first-time buyers to get onto the ladder.
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New builds often come with incentives for those buying their first home, including shared ownership options and schemes to make them more affordable.
Colleen Babcock, Rightmove’s property expert, said: “Despite the historically high number of available homes for sale, there is still a long-term shortage of affordable homes in the right place.
“We need more homes to support people at every stage of the moving journey, from first-time buyers to downsizers.”
If there are fewer properties available for first-time buyers, that means prices could rise for these types of homes.
Nicholas Mendes, mortgage technical manager for broker John Charcol, said: “Housebuilders respond to market conditions, and a near ten-year low in new developments tells you they lack confidence to build at scale.
“If that persists, the shortage compounds year after year, and its first-time buyers who feel it most because they can’t simply move up or down the ladder to find alternatives.”
He warned that if the lack of housebuilding continues, it “risks locking another generation into renting for longer”.
Rightmove has said its data suggests the Government is not on track to meet its house building tatget.
That’s despite sweeping reforms to the planning system designed to cut red tape and speed up development.
The UK’s construction industry has been in decline for about a year and a half.
S&P Global UK construction data showed activity dropped at the fastest rate in May since the height of the COVID pandemic.
Builders cited project delays, hesitancy to make big investment decisions, and general cutbacks to customer budgets.
Barratt Redrow, the UK’s biggest housebuilder, called for more targeted support to help first-time buyers get on the housing ladder.
Sales and marketing director Steve Mariner said: “Government has made good progress reforming the planning system, helping unlock more land for development.
“However, increasing regulatory costs are holding new homes back, while low customer confidence, higher borrowing costs and wider economic uncertainty are all making it harder for first-time buyers to get on to the housing ladder.”
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