But council homes plan could boost overall supply

New figures from the National House Building Council (NHBC) show a 4% year-on-year fall in the number of new homes registered in the second quarter of 2026, down to 29,162 from 30,259 in Q2 2025.

Private sector registrations fell 5% to 19,045, compared to 20,097 in Q2 2025, while registrations in the rental and affordable sector were broadly unchanged from the second quarter of 2025, with 10,117 new homes registered compared with 10,162 a year earlier.

Across the UK, 6 out of 12 regions saw a decline in registrations in Q2 2026 compared to Q2 2025, with the biggest decreases in the South West (-42%), East Midlands (-36%) and Wales (-34%). London saw the greatest rise (+170%), with the North West (+37%), East of England (+15%), South East (+12%), West Midlands (+7%) and Scotland (+6%) also experiencing an uplift.

Build programmes slowed

Daniel Pearce, chief strategy officer at NHBC, said: “Elevated interest rates, geopolitical volatility and rising costs combined with affordability pressures impacting consumer demand, meant that many house builders slowed their build programmes in the second quarter.

“While the decline in new home registrations will come as little surprise, we welcome the commitment from new Prime Minister Andy Burnham to roll out the most ambitious council house-building programme since the post-war era; this will be an important lever in boosting overall supply. Greater clarity on the mechanisms and funding to deliver this will be welcomed by the industry and house builders stand ready to play their part.”