England Facing Sizeable Housing Shortfall
England is facing a sizeable housing shortfall of an estimated 70,000 new homes annually. According to the latest report released by DTZ, the government has been urged to make reforms quickly to prevent a full on crisis. Funds are available for building which could be released, as well as land where new homes could gain an address.
Even with the land made available, the DTZ thinks the problem will persist. The problem, they believe, is with the absence of long-term financing for new homes. The number of homes needed to satisfy the annual growth in England households is 100,000. Building documentation indicates over the course of the last two years only 130,000 new homes have been built, which is well short of the required amount.
Chris Cobbold, head of DTZ's residential practice group, commented on the housing shortage facing the UK, saying: "At present the government's strategy is like a two legged stool: relying on the traditional house building model and the new model of affordable housing delivery. This will not deliver the number of new homes the nation needs. A third leg, long term institutional investment in the residential sector, is essential.
"There has been a lot of talk about attracting institutional investment, but outside the student residential sector it hasn't happened. The government needs to take this by the scruff of the neck and establish half a dozen pilot schemes to demonstrate to investors that they can make the consistent, predictable returns they are seeking."