New-build properties account for just 8.1% of homes currently advertised for sale across Great Britain, new research reveals.
UK Property Development finds an estimated 42,162 of the 522,714 properties it analysed are new builds, with significant differences in availability between regions and cities.
The figures take on added significance following the Government’s announcement of Your First Home, which will target support specifically at first-time buyers purchasing new-build properties in England.
The scheme is expected to enable eligible buyers to purchase with deposits starting at 2.5%, supported by a government-backed equity loan worth 20% of the property price.
REGIONAL DIVIDE
Scotland has the largest proportion of new-build properties among current listings at 14.2%, according to UKPD, followed by the North East at 10.9% and East Midlands at 10%.
Wales records the lowest proportion at 3.9%, followed by London at 6.3% and the South West at 6.5%.
The difference is even greater at city level.
New builds account for 16.5% of properties currently listed in Liverpool, followed by Glasgow at 13.2%, Edinburgh at 11.8% and Newcastle at 11.3%.
At the opposite end of the table, just 2.3% of properties listed in Brighton are new builds, with Nottingham at 3.2% and Bristol at 4.1%.
YOUR FIRST HOME
Andy Morrison (main picture), Director of UK Property Development, says the Government’s new scheme could increase competition for the available new-build stock.
He says: “Andy Burnham’s plan to bring back Help to Buy will almost certainly increase buyer demand for new-build homes. But these figures highlight just how limited the choice of new-build homes is up and down Britain.”
The Government has described Your First Home as a new equity loan scheme rather than a relaunch of Help to Buy. Developers participating in the scheme will also be expected to contribute towards its costs.
Morrison adds: “More broadly, the figures also underline the scale of the challenge facing the government as it seeks to accelerate housebuilding.
“Ambitions to go ‘full throttle’ on housing delivery will ultimately need to translate into more homes being built and brought to market.”
Official figures show 143,770 new homes were completed in England during the year to June 2026, unchanged from the previous 12 months. Starts increased 15% to 136,330 over the same period.
