Statistics from the DCLG for Q3 2006 found starts were down 9 per cent on the same time last year, while completions had fallen by 1 per cent on Q3 2005.
However, house building over the previous 12 months climbed in comparison to 2005, with starts up 2 per cent and completions up 6 per cent.
Simon Biddle, head of marketing and communications at Infinity Mortgages, said: “The stats are down but the overall trend towards new build is down, which is a disaster. The gap between buyers and property is widening and will continue to widen and the government needs to address this, especially in the South East. Otherwise, there will be a massive housing shortage and we’re already going that way.”
Government estimates have revealed 200,000 new homes every year are needed to tackle affordability problems but only 165,400 properties were completed in the year ending September 2006.
Housing Minister, Yvette Cooper, said:
“It won’t just be young people who lose out if we don’t build the new homes the next generation needs. People’s chances of home ownership should not depend on whether or not their parents or grandparents were home owners before them.”
