Q3 2004 new house-building statistics UK 14/02/06
In Great Britain the average anticipated selling price of new homes started during quarter three of 2004, increased by seven percent on the same period in 2003. There was bad news for first time buyers who found their ability to buy fell in the third quarter. NHBC, the leading new home warranty and insurance provider for new homes in the UK, has published these figures in its New House-Building Statistics booklet for quarter three 2004.
The average anticipated selling price of new homes in Great Britain (started by NHBC registered builders) was £176,000 during the third quarter of 2004, a seven percent increase on quarter three of 2003 (£165,000). Based on actual selling prices, the proportion of new homes priced at over £100,000 went up to 92 per cent, a significant increase on the same period in 2003 (86 per cent).
NHBC's first time buyers' ability to buy index decreased by seven points during the quarter to 68 (quarter two was 75). The index is based on a formula which takes into account the average cost of homes bought by first time buyers, average income and mortgage interest rates (from the Nationwide Building Society). The higher the index, the greater the ability to buy.
Imtiaz Farookhi, Chief Executive of NHBC, says:
"The new house building industry continues to be buoyant despite evidence of a marked slowdown in the housing market. NHBC statistics show that to date this year there has been a total of 142,786 applications to start new homes in the UK, showing a four percent increase on the same period in 2003 (136,887). Furthermore, our quarter three figures also show an increase in the average number of new homes sold each day and the number of homes completed compared to quarter three of last year."
UK-wide figures show a total of 48,909 applications to start new homes during quarter three of 2004, showing a nine percent increase on the same period in 2003 (45,067). Of that total, 43,407 relate to private sector activity (i.e. excluding housing associations), showing a six percent increase on the same quarter of 2003 (40,924). Housing association starts totalled 5,502 - an increase of 33 percent on quarter three of 2003 (4,143).
NHBC UK figures show that there were 40,101 new build completions during quarter three of 2004, showing a two percent increase on the same quarter last year (39,251).
The figure for the average daily sales of new homes in the UK for quarter three of 2004 was 546, an increase of eight percent on the same period in 2003 (507).
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