Tag Archives: government
Calls for new home building quality to be improved in UK
Members of Parliament in the UK and construction experts are calling on the Government to set up a New Homes Ombudsman to mediate in disputes between home buyers and house builders. This is one of 10 recommendations setting out measures to improve the quality of workmanship in new homes and provide consumers with easier and cheaper forms of redress, to get problems fixed. According to the All Party Parliamentary Group for Excellence in the Built Environment (APPGEBE) house builders should be upping their game and putting consumers at the heart of their business model and the Government should use its influence to promote quality at every opportunity. ‘The Government is intent on seeing the construction of one million new homes within the course of this Parliament. However, our view is that increasing the quantity of new homes must not be achieved at the expense of their quality,’ said Chairman of the group, Oliver Colvile. ‘It is clear to us that there is a quality gap between customer demands and industry delivery. Closing this gap will only come about, we believe, if housebuilders make a concerted effort to create a more consumer focused culture. From the evidence we heard, consumers want to see an improved quality of build, homes that are fit for purpose and an easy to understand warranty,’ he pointed out. He added that when something is wrong, consumers want an affordable and accessible means of putting it right. ‘To this end we have set out a series of measures to redress the imbalance between buyers and sellers,’ he said. The report says that the role of the building control inspector is a key part of the process and it recommends that there should be a minimum level of compliance inspections. It also says that new home buyers should be given information about the building inspections carried out as this will improve transparency. The role of a New Homes Ombudsman would include mediating disputes between consumers and their builders or warranty providers to offer a quick resolution procedure paid for by a housebuilders’ levy. The report also recommends that house building sales contracts should be standardised as this would remove much of the uncertainty that presently arises from the bespoke nature of each builder’s sales contract, which can deter so many from pursuing claims Buyers should have the right to inspect properties before completion and this would discourage builders from serving notices to complete prematurely, or concealing major defects until after they have received the full purchase price, and would also encourage better quality control and site management pre-completion Builders should be required to provide buyers with a comprehensive information pack, the aim being to improve transparency of the design, building and inspection process. The pack should contain information including, designs and plans, specifications and details about both warranty and building control inspections, when carried out and by whom. The report suggests that the Department of Communities and Local Government should commission a thorough… Continue reading
Lettings agents call on UK govt to help restore confidence in lettings market
A leading group of lettings agents in the UK is calling for the Government to take action to restore confidence in the residential lettings market in the aftermath of the vote to leave the European Union. There has been a cooling in investment in the lettings market due to pre-referendum uncertainty, plans to cut mortgage tax relief for landlords and now Brexit, according to Belvoir Lettings, at a time when there is growing tenant demand. ‘With the Bank of England hinting at further reductions in interest rates, which will continue to hit savers, property remains a very attractive long term investment opportunity, particularly for those with cash to invest,’ said Belvoir managing director, Dorian Gonsalves. ‘However, in some areas continued uncertainty over the future of EU nationals in the UK is having a negative impact. For example, in Boston in the East Midlands, which was reported as being the most pro-Brexit town in the UK with 75% of the population voting to leave, thousands of EU workers remain anxious about their immigration status,’ he pointed out. ‘We hope that the Government will act quickly to resolve this uncertainty and reassure EU citizens about their future in the UK. This will also help to reassure those overseas landlords who are also expressing concern,’ he added. Indeed, Donna Burrell, owner of Belvoir Boston, reports that although the rental and sales market has now picked up, there is continued anxiety amongst Eastern European workers, with many now adopting a 'wait and see' attitude before committing to investments. ‘During the build up to the referendum we noticed that business was quiet. Belvoir Boston now provides an estate agency service, and prior to the referendum many Eastern European tenants who had been working and renting in the area had started to buy the properties they had been renting. Now that Britain has voted to leave the EU we have noticed a more cautious wait and see approach and some have pulled out of sales,’ she explained. ‘There has also been some racist backlash from a minority group, which is making Eastern European tenants and foreign investors feel uncomfortable about committing to investment. Boston is reliant on Eastern European migrants to work in factories and keep local businesses afloat. If these workers feel forced to leave, it could potentially be catastrophic for the town, its people and local businesses,’ she pointed out. ‘I really hope that the Government will end the uncertainty by giving out a strong message of reassurance, as many of these people have worked and lived here for several years, and contribute enormously to the community,’ she added. According to Emma Falco, co-owner of Belvoir Peterborough, Brexit has been a hot topic for landlords and tenants, but whilst there is a lot of conversation surrounding it, it doesn't seem to have deterred serious investors. ‘In fact, I think many still have the 2008 crash in their minds and are hopeful that they may be able to pick… Continue reading
Research reveals poor record on new home building in England
The shortage of housing in England is set to become more acute due to the decision to leave the European Union with current levels 30% below those recorded before the economic downturn in 2008. Indeed, recommendations put forward by the Barker Review of housing supply in 2004 that 270,000 new homes should be built every year have never been met, according to a new report from the Yorkshire Building Society. It means that the country has missed its house building targets by a 1,199,180 since 2004. And despite the government pledging in 2015 to build a million homes by 2020 only 142,890 were built in 2015 as a whole, 29% less than the 200,000 homes which would need to be built per year to reach the one million target by 2020. The Barker Review highlighted that England alone would need to increase its level of house building by 145,000 in order to reduce annual house price inflation to 1.1%, regarded as a more controlled level of growth. This figure was based on there being 125,000 completions in 2002/2003, meaning that the recommended number of homes needed per year to reduce house price growth to 1.1% was 270,000. Given that this recommended level of house building has never been reached in the years since and that the recommendations in the Review only relate to England alone, the number of properties needed in the UK each year to reduce house price inflation to 1.1% is now likely to be significantly higher than the 270,000 figure, the report points out. The figures therefore show that the government’s target of building 200,000 homes per year is at least 70,000 properties a year short of what the country needs. The UK came closest to the 270,000 figure in the years leading up to the 2007 financial crisis. In the years between the publication of the Barker Review in 2004 and the advent of the financial crisis in 2007, an average of 213,080 homes were built each year. By comparison, the average number of homes built in the eight years since the financial crisis is 30% below the pre-crisis average, at 148,563 properties. ‘The Brexit decision and the uncertainty it creates around the prospects for private sector house builders, not to mention the country’s economic outlook, is likely to heighten the housing crisis,’ said Andrew McPhillips, chief economist at Yorkshire Building Society. ‘Addressing the shortage of homes must remain high on the Government’s agenda regardless of the work required following the EU vote. We need a clear strategy to deliver the 1.2 million additional homes and options like giving local councils fuller control of existing housing funding, as well as freedom to develop surplus public land, should form a key part of that,’ he explained. ‘The longer we leave the supply crisis to worsen, the more difficult it will be to resolve. The UK has failed to build the number of homes needed to meet demand year after year, which… Continue reading
