There were 45,000 housing completions during the period, which is a rise of 185% on the previous quarter
The number of completed homes almost tripled compared to the previous quarter, the latest figures show.
The government statistics reveal that 45,000 homes were completed in the period, which is a 185% increase on the previous quarter, as the as the housebuilding industry bounced back from the first coronavirus lockdown.
The stats also show that the number of property developers that have started building has more than doubled during the corresponding period, with the number of housing starts up 111% to 35,710.
Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick said: The figures show that the number of new homes developers have started building have more than doubled compared to the previous quarter and the number of completed homes has almost tripled. This reflects the government’s commitment throughout the pandemic to support industry to enable construction sites to remain open and operate safely.
We extended planning permission deadlines and flexible working hours on sites so that builders, architects and developers have been able to continue working, while following public health advice. In turn this has protected millions of jobs, from builders, through to estate agents and carpenters, he said.
The housing industry is the key to our economic recovery, which is why we’re investing £12 billion in affordable housing, providing £400 million to build more homes on brownfield land, and investing £7.1 billion for a new National Home Building Fund over the next four years, unlocking up to 860,000 homes, Mr Jenrick said.
Posting a message on Twitter yesterday, house minister Christopher Pincher commented: Our steps to keep the housing market open have resulted in new starts on housing only being down 1% between September 2019–2020 compared to the previous year – despite the challenges of the pandemic.
