The annual 2005 compendium of statistics, published today, covers all aspects of housing and includes the following highlights:
* Nearly 153 thousand new dwellings (excluding conversions and change of use) were completed in England during the financial year ending 31 March 2004. This is the third year running where there has been a significant increase over the previous year. The latest increase, at 6 per cent is the highest of the three annual increases.
* The tendency towards the building of smaller residential properties can be seen from the fact that the number of flats built as a proportion of all new properties increased from 20 per cent in 2000/01 to 41 per cent in 2004/05.
* In 2004 house prices continued to rise across all regions. In the North of England (NE, NW and Y&H), the rise is further up than the previous year with all 3 northern regions over 21 per cent and NE as much as 26 per cent. In contrast, the rest of England experienced a decline in the increase. Most dramatic decline is in the East by over 10 per cent. SE, East and London have the lowest increase; all are just about 7 per cent. The remaining 3 regions still maintained a rise of between 10 and 15 percents.
* The impact of the recent house price boom on first-time buyers with a mortgage can be seen in a number of ways. The proportion of first-time buyers under the age of 25 has fallen from 23 per cent in 1994 to 18 per cent in 2004. And the proportion of purchases by first-time buyers for £100,000 or more has risen from just under 6 per cent in 1997 to 58 per cent in 2004.
* Under-occupation is far more common than overcrowding. Only 2.5 per cent of households are overcrowded while 36 per cent of households are under-occupied. London has the highest proportions on overcrowding (7 per cent) and lowest in under-occupation (25 per cent). As household size increases overcrowding tends to become more common and under-occupation less common. For example, of households with 5 or more persons, 19 per cent were overcrowded and only 10 per cent per cent under-occupying. This tendency is most pronounced in the social sector where 32 per cent of households with 5 or more persons were overcrowded and only 0.9 per cent under-occupying.
* Results from the Expenditure and Food Survey (EFS) showed that on average general housing expenditure (including rents and mortgage payments but excluding capital payments other than those under repayment mortgage) accounted for 18 per cent household disposable income. For those who have a mortgage and the private renters, their figure is highest reaching a quarter of their income.
