In half a year (from Q4 2024 to Q2 2025), housing consents have dropped by around 50% according to the Housebuilders Quarterly Report Q2 2025
The BDS Housebuilders Quarterly Report reflects a struggling housing market, affecting both buying prices and planning permissions.
The report covers large-scale private housebuilders, public sector developments, and ‘other’ builds such as those from investment groups, at regional, national, and county levels.
Housing consents fell by 15% in Q2 2025
In Q1 2025, houses accounted for around 65% of total recorded consents, which actually increased by five points in Q2 2025 in spite of the drop of overall consents. The ratio of housing to flats now sits at 70:30.
In Q2 2025, this represents 1,700 housing consents for a market share of around 5%, when Q1 2025 was around 6%.
By region, the South East saw the most private housing consents at >8,000 units, and public housing consents hit >350 units, while the East of England was not far behind in ‘other’ housing consents at >1,500.
Despite progress, more needs to be done
Writing for PBC Today in July, Robbie Blackhurst of the Centre for Construction Best Practice described (CCBP) extra government funding and planning reforms as a demonstration of their “ongoing commitment to tackling the housing crisis.
However, surveys found that there is need for more support across all housing tenures, including permanent and temporary housing.
Robbie wrote: “The £2bn extra spend for social and affordable housing is part of a wider £4.65bn allocation for infrastructure and housing, with most of the funding expected to be spent later in the parliament.
“While this long-term commitment is encouraging, the housing sector has faced numerous challenges, including rising material costs, labour shortages and regulatory pressures. Without clear action on how these funds will be managed, there is a risk that they will fail to deliver meaningful outcomes.
“Additionally, the proposed £3.4bn levy on new homes, designed to fund building safety remediation after Grenfell, raises concerns.
“While the intention behind the levy is understandable, it risks putting further strain on developers, particularly SMEs, which are already dealing with rising costs and regulatory burdens.
“The government’s housing targets are ambitious, with a goal of building 305,000 homes per year by the end of the forecast period. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) estimates that this could bring the government closer to its broader target of 1.5m new homes by 2030.
“While these targets are encouraging, they will require more than just supply-side measures. Demand-side solutions must also be considered, ensuring adequate support for all housing sectors, including temporary and supported housing.”
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