Private housing construction 'elevated in Q2'

Posted: 03 Aug 2011 14:09:10 GMT

The second quarter of the year has seen a three per cent rise in private housing construction.

Private housing construction in the UK appears to be on the increase, while such public sector work heads in the opposite direction.

According to the new Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) Construction Market Survey, the difference between the two markets became increasingly apparent over the second quarter of 2011.

The figures revealed government budget cuts have taken their toll on public housing builds, with 17 per cent more chartered surveyors noting they saw these levels fall rather than increase in the three-month period.

Private housing and private commercial workloads, on the other hand, escalated over the period.

The survey showed three per cent more surveyors reported increases as opposed to reductions for private housing work, while 16 per cent recorded the same for commercial jobs.

It means private home building has been positive for two consecutive quarters for the first time since 2007.

Simon Rubinsohn, chief economist at Rics, said: "The results of the latest RICS Construction Survey clearly highlight the impact of the austerity package being implemented by the government."

The industry figure added: "It is particularly encouraging that development in the private commercial sphere is continuing to pick up in the face of the challenging economic backdrop."

In addition, the survey revealed a wide regional variation regarding the construction industry continues to exist.

It was shown that workloads in London and the south-east of England kept on rising in the second three-month period of the year, while those recorded elsewhere across the country remained stable or decreased slightly.

Going against this trend, however, was Northern Ireland, which reported that 64 per cent more of those questioned claimed work amounts escalated rather than fell over this time frame.

Steve Turner, head of communications at the Home Builders Federation, recently claimed the construction industry in the UK continues to face considerable constraints, adding the planning system needs to be finalised sooner rather than later.
 

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