1.4 million new homes registered to be built in the past decade, reports NHBC

The number of new homes registered to be built per annum in the UK has risen by more than 80% over the last decade, according to NHBC’s annual new homes statistics.

Over the ten-year period (2010 – 2019), a total of 1.4 million new homes (1,405,771) were registered to be built across the UK.  These figures represent the first complete decade since the financial crash in 2007/08.

In 2019, 161,022 homes were registered with NHBC, an 81% increase on the 88,849 homes registered a decade ago (2009), making 2019 the strongest year for NHBC new home registrations since 2007.  Over the same period, the West Midlands (169%) and North West (148%) have seen the highest percentage increase of new homes registered.

Compared to the previous year, the number of homes registered in 2019 was up 1% (2019:161,022 v 2018: 158,878). Growth was driven by London, where new home registrations increased by 37%, with both the capital’s affordable and rental (+42%) and private housing markets (+33%) performing strongly.

The Build to Rent sector had another positive year with registrations up 57% in 2019 compared to 2018. New home completions in 2019 of 150,436 were also marginally up on the previous year (149,702).

As the leading warranty and insurance provider for new homes in the UK, NHBC’s registration statistics are a lead indicator of the UK’s new homes market.

Commenting on the new home registration statistics for 2019, NHBC Chief Executive Steve Wood said: “It is great to see the resilience of house builders over the 2019 year.  This momentum needs to be maintained as we enter a new decade, with the industry ever-more focused on quality and fire safety.

“At NHBC we remain committed to our purpose of giving homeowners confidence in the quality of the nation’s new homes and working with house builders as the industry faces into the skills, supply chain and environmental challenges in front of us.”

NHBC UK statistics show that:

• During 2019, the number of NHBC new home registrations (accounting for approximately 80% of all new UK homes) was 161,022 compared to 158,878 in 2018.
• 112,086 homes were registered in the private sector, compared to 115,584 in the previous year (-3%).
• 48,936 homes were registered in the affordable sector, compared to 43,294 in the previous year (13%).

Download the annual new home statistics booklet

Full regional breakdown of total new homes registered for 2019 compared to 2018: