The property industry has warned that a modest recovery in housebuilding risks masking deeper structural problems after Housing Secretary Steve Reed hailed “green shoots” in new supply figures published last week.
Official data shows that new build starts rose 18% in the year to September 2025, to 117,980 homes, while starts in the third quarter increased 3% year on year to 29,620.
Since the start of the current Parliament in July 2024, an estimated 309,600 homes have been delivered, taking the government past one fifth of its target to build 1.5 million homes.
Ministers said the figures pointed to early success from planning reforms and other pro-supply measures, with further gains expected later in the Parliament as policy changes feed through into delivery.
BOOSTING NUMBERS
However, Propertymark warns that higher headline numbers alone would not resolve the housing crisis unless new supply better reflected local demand, affordability and infrastructure constraints.
Timothy Douglas (main picture, inset), head of policy and campaigns at Propertymark, says: “Any increase in housing supply is welcome, and these figures offer some much-needed optimism after a prolonged period of uncertainty across the sector.
“However, boosting headline numbers alone will not solve the housing crisis.
“What matters just as much is ensuring the right homes are being built in the right places, with a mix of tenures that reflects local need and supports first-time buyers, renters, and those seeking genuinely affordable housing.”
FRAGILE CONFIDENCE
And he adds: “For growth to be sustainable, new development must be matched with investment in infrastructure, transport and local services, alongside a planning system that is clear, consistent and deliverable for all parties.
“Confidence among developers, lenders, and consumers remains fragile, and continued reform must focus on providing long-term certainty rather than short-term fixes.
“Propertymark members on the ground see daily the mismatch between supply and demand, and while these green shoots are encouraging, there is still significant work ahead if the UK Government is to meet its ambitions and deliver homes that communities can thrive in for generations to come.”
UNEVEN DEMAND
The warning comes as investor appetite, developer confidence and consumer demand remain uneven across regions, despite easing interest rates and renewed government focus on housing delivery.
Steve Reed, the Housing Secretary, said last week that the latest figures demonstrated that reforms to the planning system were beginning to take effect.
He also said the government would “go further than ever before” to make planning clearer, more predictable and faster in order to meet its 1.5 million homes ambition.
Developers also struck a cautiously optimistic tone.
Phil Mayall, managing director at regeneration specialist Muse, said the rise in housing starts was encouraging but stressed that delivery still fell short of what was required nationally, with further obstacles to overcome before supply could accelerate at scale.
