Homes for Scotland has warned Holyrood needs to build at least 100,000 new homes by the end of this parliament to tackle the housing crisis…
The lack of affordable homes has become so dire it now considered a crisis. Across the UK, the situation is reaching critical levels. Westminster has upped the number of new homes it aims to provide to one million across England. Now, industry trade body Homes for Scotland has warned the Scottish government will also need to build at least 100,000 new properties to meet growing demands.
Figures revealed the number of new homes constructed today is 40 per cent lower than in 2007. Homes for Scotland said the nation needed to return back to pre-recession levels of house building if it is to tackle the housing crisis.
The trade body has called on the Scottish National Party (SNP) and Scottish Labour to set targets of 50,000 and 60,000 affordable homes, respectively. Head of the SNP Nicola Sturgeon said if her party wins the upcoming election she will pledge a building target of 50,000.
Chief executive of Homes for Scotland Philip Hogg said the target is “ambitious but achievable”.
However, he said it was not just about creating affordable housing. He added: “A continuing focus on publicly subsidised affordable housing targets tells just one part of the story.
“What about the majority of Scots who still want to own their own home or those who want the flexibility of renting in the private sector?”
Homes for Scotland said there must be a focus on this route to increase the amount of affordable homes. A new report compiled by Nathaniel Lichfield & Partners (NLP) on behalf of the firm highlighted the benefits of increasing the number of new properties.
NLP’s Nicola Woodward said: “The need to increase the supply of housing is rising up the Scottish political agenda and our analysis shows that if home building can return to pre-recession delivery rates it will produce some major economic benefits, including an additional £443 million of capital expenditure, £1.9 billion extra economic output and almost 38,400 extra jobs.”
