Annual housing completions in England totalled 107,950 in the 12 months to September 2013, a decrease of 8% compared with the previous 12 months.
Seasonally adjusted house building starts in England are estimated at 32,230 in the September quarter, 8% higher than the previous quarter and completions are estimated at 28, up 5%.
Grainia Long, chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Housing , said: “It is two years since the government announced its ‘ambitious’ housing strategy for England which the Prime Minister said would drive up the level of house building, ensure we are helping new home owners and boost consumer confidence.
“While it is encouraging to see increases in starts and completions in the three months to September compared with the previous quarter, these figures show we are still nowhere near tackling our national housing crisis, which is causing misery for millions of people who are unable to secure a decent home at a price they can afford.”
“Annual housing completions dropped 8% in the year to September to 107,950 – less than half the number we need to be building to accommodate our growing population.”
Long also expressed worries about the decline in new build affordable home levels which dropped by 25% over the course of 2013.
She said: “It is also deeply worrying to see a 25% drop in the number of new build affordable homes provided in 2012 to 2013.
“It’s time for the government to step in and take direct action. Allowing councils to borrow more so they could build more homes could be a vital first step.
“It would mean they could build 15,000 homes a year, supporting 23,500 jobs and adding £5.6bn to our economy.”
