Editor's note: This brief was summarised by The Property AI Newsroom from a report by Property Industry Eye. Read the original article for full details.
Burnham’s Council Housebuilding Plan May Create Postcode Lottery, Research Finds
Research by specialist lender Together has found that Andy Burnham’s pledge to deliver the largest council housebuilding programme since the post-war period risks creating a postcode lottery. The findings highlight that there is insufficient publicly owned land in the areas with the greatest housing need.
Together used data from property platform Searchland to estimate that publicly owned brownfield land in England could accommodate between 187,000 and 207,000 homes. This falls short of Labour’s previously announced ambition to deliver 300,000 social and affordable homes.
The analysis also revealed that public land suitable for development is heavily concentrated in a small number of local authorities. Birmingham was identified as having the largest supply, with 185 sites capable of accommodating around 11,500 homes. However, around two-thirds of the 20 local authority areas with the biggest housing shortfalls have little or no significant public land available for development. This raises concerns that communities with the greatest need could miss out on new council housing.
Together stated that only five authorities—Birmingham, Bristol, Bradford, Lewisham, and Kirklees—combine a significant housing deficit with substantial public land holdings. According to the lender, a third or more of the proposed programme would need to be delivered on land acquired at market value, and many publicly owned sites may still face questions over their suitability for development.
The report also noted that small and medium-sized housebuilders would need to play a central role in delivering homes on smaller brownfield sites. However, access to development finance remains a major constraint for these builders. Together warned that without sufficient funding, even promising sites may struggle to progress from allocation to construction.
These findings are relevant for UK letting agents and inventory clerks, as the availability and location of new council housing could impact local rental markets and property management workloads.
Source: Property Industry Eye