Unclear how proposed changes will work The building industry has described reforms to planning as a step in the right direction but lack of dedicated small sites for development and planning fee increases still pose major challenges for SME housebuilders. Smaller sites should be included in local housing plans Statutory consultees scope to be curtailed Judicial reviews to be streamlined Planning reforms leave SME housebuilders out of the picture Builders won’t be getting ‘shovels in the ground quicker’ to build [...]

Commonhold set for mixed-use developments Housebuilders back plansfor commonhold ownership for new build flats claiming this will boost urban density by giving consumers confidence to buy such properties. Commonhold would ban leases giving residents outright ownership Mixed-use developments with offices or shops could be included Commonhold is widespread for apartments in Scotland, Europe and the US Housebuilders back ban on leaseholds for newly built flats Housebuilderssupportplansto ban leaseholdson new flats and mixed-use developmentsas they say it will help the government [...]

SMEs could be hardest hit by shortage of installers Ambitious targets for half of the UK’s 28m housing stock to have heat pumps by 2040 will be difficult to realise without more qualified installers or government support for the easier to instal air-to-air pumps. 70,000 people are qualified to install air-to-air heat pumps Just 2,000 are qualified to install air-to-water systems Government boiler replacement grants should be extended to all types of heat pumps Heat pumps for half of the [...]

Programme offers on-site two-week placement The housebuilding industry hopes its latest site manager course will go some way to redressing the gender imbalance where just four per cent of people in this role are women. 16 per cent of the workforce are female but only four per cent are site managers Eleven major housebuilders are supporting training programmes to increase numbers 52 sites across England, Wales and Scotland will be offering hands on experience Housebuilders expand training to boost female [...]

Southeast housebuilders could be particularly badly hit SME housebuilders are concerned they will be caught up in the new building safety levy to be introduced in September for cladding remediation, yet for-profit housing developments tied to the public sector will be exempt. For-profit housing built by housing associations will be exempt Sites of ten plus homes will be liable Fear that four per cent tax on annual profits of over £40m will be lowered to £10m Housebuilders of smaller low-rise [...]

An influential committee has written to the government urging them to consider how they can help SMEs when drawing up guidance and criteria for green belt reviews. Identity of grey belt sites lost in wider green belt reviews Grey belt sites lose allure for SME developers Green belt reviews should focus on helping SMEs Government urged to review green belt with SME developers in mind SME builders should be at the forefront when reviewing the green belt, the house of [...]

A lack of planning officers could be one of the biggest obstacles for hitting the Government’s target of 1.5m new homes by 2029, warns the Homebuilders Federation. 2,200 planners needed to speed up applications 80 per cent of councils are operating below capacity Most major planning applications exceed 13-week timescale More planning officers needed to hit 1.5m new homes target Building 370,000 new homes a year is unattainable unless the Government funds training and recruitment of more planning officers, the [...]

The Government is pinning its hopes on a new environmental restoration fund to replace restrictive environmental rules stalling housebuilding and major infrastructure projects. 74 local authorities have protected sitesacross 27 water catchments Up to 150,000 new build homes have been halted Environmental restoration fund hoped to speed things up Environmental restoration fund to replace restrictive nutrient neutrality rules Nutrient neutrality rules blocking tens of thousands of new home builds will be replaced with a restoration fund, environment secretary Steve Reed [...]

Developers are expecting to see more property sales as buyers attempt tobenefit from a recent dip in house prices and beat the new lower stamp duty thresholds in April. Average house price in England and Walesis£290,000 November’s figures show a 0.4 per cent month-on-month decrease Bank of England base rate cut of 0.25 per cent expected next month House sales expected to risefollowing price dip and imminent stamp duty increases Developers are optimistic that house sale volumes will grow in [...]