The number of new homes built in the West Midlands declines

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Despite seeing a seven year high for completions nationally, the West Midlands saw the number of new homes registered fall …

Nationally, new build completions are on the rise, with a surge being seen in areas such as Wakefield and London. However, the West Midlands did not perform as well, with the number of new homes registered between February and April reaching 3,405. Comparatively, the same period the year before saw the figure reach 4,375.

However, figures should be bolstered by plans to create 14,000 new homes under a scheme aimed at creating a Black Country Garden City. This would bring together towns across the region, building on 3,700 acres of mainly brownfield land. More than 500 sites have already been earmarked by interested developers.

According to the latest figures from the National House Building Council 14,228 new homes were registered to be built across the UK in April. This was an increase of 17 cent. Broken down, this comprised of 11,258 private sector properties and 2,970 public sector.

NHBC Chief Executive Mike Quinton said: “April’s new home figures show that the industry enjoyed a successful month, with registration numbers well ahead of this time last year.

“During these periods of sustained industry activity and production, NHBC remains committed to ensuring the highest possible quality in the standards of the UK’s new homes.”

Figures released earlier this week also revealed a 13 per cent year-on-year increase in the number of homes built, with some 140,180 homes completed during 2015-16.

However, the amount of homes being built is nowhere near what was pledged by the government. Charity Shelter’s chief executive Campbell Robb said: “The government has promised to build a million homes by 2020, yet these figures show one of the biggest quarterly falls in the number of homes built that we’ve seen for a decade.

“We’re still only building a little over half the homes we need each year and it’s simply not good enough.

“Our drastic shortage of homes has pushed millions of people into expensive and unstable private renting, shelling out vast amounts of their income on rent and watching the dream of a home of their own slip further out of reach.

“And at the sharp end of the crisis, more and more families are languishing in temporary accommodation or on waiting lists, unable to build a future in a home they can afford.

“After six years and a Housing Bill that does little to tackle the underlying cause of our housing crisis, the Government needs to get on the side of people on typical incomes. Rather than schemes like Starter Homes which only help higher earners, it’s time they commit to building homes for ordinary people.”

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