The number of new homes started by housing associations rose in the second quarter to 10,511 new homes, according to figures released by the National Housing Federation.
Nearly half the new homes (4,476 properties) were being delivered via Section 106 agreements, without any Government grant or loans. The second quarter also saw an increase in the total number of homes completed, with 9,842 homes completed in the quarter, up from 8,904 for 2017/18.
The NHF’s supply survey for the three months up to and including September 2018 showed that HAs began 10,511 homes, up seven per cent from 9,793 in the second quarter of 2017/18.
It is the highest second quarter figure for development activity since the NHF started collating figures in 2016. This was achieved despite the number of market sale new home starts falling by more than 37 per cent, to 1,321 for the period.
There was a rise in shared ownership starts, up by almost a third to 3,871 compared with last year’s figure of 2,885 homes, while starts on affordable rent properties rose by almost a quarter to 4,217 and the number of social rent starts was up to 840 properties.
Figures from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government showed that the number of homes started in the same three month period across the whole of the housing sector reached 44,740, a 12 per cent increase on the 39,810 starts in the same period last year.
By Patrick Mooney, editor