Private sector drives 20% increase in home registrations

Housing registrations between February and April 2015 hit 41,307 – a 20 per cent increase on the same period of 2014.
Overall, 41,307 homes were registered in the rolling quarter from February to April, compared with 34,451 a year earlier.

A 24 per cent boost in private housing registrations drove growth in the sector, with 31,083 new private homes registered between February and April this year.

In the same period of 2014, 24,993 new private homes were registered.

Public housing registrations saw growth of 8 per cent, with 10,224 homes registered in the rolling quarter, up from 9,458 in 2014.

Regionally, performance has been mixed over the period, with two areas experiencing a decline in home registrations.
Greater London saw a marked dip in registrations, which fell to 5,469 over the rolling quarter, down from 7,867 year on year.

Similarly, the North-east saw a fall of 30 per cent, with housing registrations dropping to 1,002 in the period, down from 1,458 a year earlier.

In contrast, the East of England saw registrations rise by 50 per cent, the largest of any region.

Housing registrations hit 4,679 in the quarter, up from 3,125 a year earlier.

Elsewhere, the East Midlands saw growth of 49 per cent compared with 2014, while in the South-west and the West Midlands, housing registrations grew by 47 per cent over the same period.

Commenting on the statistics, NHBC chief executive Mike Quinton said: "The very positive start to the year continues, with the growth in new home registrations unaffected by uncertainty ahead of the general election, and so 2015 is likely to be another strong year.

"Now that the outcome of the election has been decided we look forward to continuing our work with government to ensure housing remains at the top of the political agenda to help us get back to pre-recession building levels."

Figures released by the Department for Communities and Local Government last week suggested housing starts increased by 31 per cent in the first quarter of 2015, while completions hit their highest level for nearly six years.

Source: Construction News