INTRODUCTION and OVERVIEW

AMA Research are pleased to announce the publication of the Ninth Edition of the report “Housebuilding Market – UK 2010”.  Key areas in the report: Review of Housebuilders – analysis of major housebuilders, volumes, market shares, positioning, key housebuilding indicators, recent corporate activity, changes in 2010, and forecasts of future trends. Detailed Assessment of the Housebuilding Market – housing starts & completions, forecast completions up to 2014, analysis by sector (private/public), mix of houses/apartments, house prices, house-moving market, urban regeneration, forecasts of future trends. New Government – impact on housebuilding – Planning, Regional Spatial Strategy plans, Affordable Housing, impact of Comprehensive Spending Review etc Future Prospects – outlook for 2011-12. Medium term prospects, barriers to growth.

Following rapid decline in 2008 / early 2009, housebuilding volumes have recovered to some extent from mid 2009-mid 2010. However, late-2010 has seen a slowdown in the market with prospects in 2011 more uncertain, and this report reviews current market developments and provides a balanced overview of activity levels, highlighting variations in sector and regional performance.

Areas of particular interest:

• Focus on major changes in housebuilding – forecasts up to 2014.

• Trends and prospects for affordable housing.

• Recent decline in apartments- will it continue?

• Activity levels in late 2010 – prospects for recovery – timing and scale of upturn – starts, completions, unsold stock.

• Impact of Coalition Government – CSR, Affordable Housing Programme and Code for Sustainable Homes, growth of MMC and OSM etc.

Contractors  included:

A & J Stephen (Holdings) Ltd, Abbey New Homes, AWG Property, Balfour Beatty, Barratt Developments Plc, Bellway Plc, Berkeley Group Plc, Bewley Homes Plc, Bloor Homes, Bovis Homes Group Plc, Britannia Developments, Canary Wharf Group, Connolly Homes plc, Countryside Properties Plc, Crest Nicholson Plc, Crosby Lend Lease, Croudace Group, Durkan Ltd, Elan Homes, Fairview New Homes, Galliford Try Plc, Hopkins Homes, Inspace Partnerships (Willmott Dixon), Keepmoat Group, Kendrick Homes, Kier Group, Land Securities, Lang O’Rourke, MacTaggart & Mickel, Mansell Partnership Housing, McInerney Group, Miller Group Ltd, MJ Gleeson, Morgan Sindall, Oakdene Homes Plc, Persimmon Plc, Quintain, Redrow Group, Scotia Homes, Shepherd Homes, Strata Homes, Taylor Wimpey Plc, Telford Homes, Tulloch Homes, Wain Homes, Weston Homes Plc.

Key areas covered  in the report include:-

HOUSE-BUILDERS

• Overall market size, number of builders, analysis of key changes in recent years.

• Analysis of market shares of leading housebuilders, comparisons of changing shares in 2009/10.

• Major review of leading national housebuilders – analysis of key indicators for UK housebuilding (completions, turnover, pre-tax profits and average selling price), recent trends, current market position.

• Rationalisation of industry structure, mergers & acquisitions, review of leading commercial developers in housebuilding, impact of new entrants, future prospects etc.

• Review of the leading regional and local housebuilders, recent corporate activity. Analysis covering turnover, pre-tax profit, completions etc.

• Overview of construction sector, output levels by sector and impact on housebuilding, future trends.

• Current market conditions, overview of housebuilding during 2009/10 – recovery up to mid-2010, performance in late-2010 and prospects into 2011.

• Analysis by sector – Private, public, self build – volumes, changing market mix, factors influencing the market, future trends, value of housebuilding output by sector.

• New housing starts and completions –trends since 2004, review of market volatility in recent years, forecasts up to 2014.

• Analysis of completions for public/ private sectors by region, impact of affordable housing market.

• Mix of flats and traditional housing – rapid growth in volumes of flats now reversed, share changes 2000-2010, future prospects (market saturation?).

• Market structure – stock of buildings in UK, ownership structure, housing stock by age of dwelling, average property prices, residential property transactions, land banks, increasing influence of mixed-use developments on “brown-field” sites.

• Factors influencing the housing market - the Sustainable Communities Plan and the Affordable Housing Programme, review of planning system, household projections, net immigration, etc.

• Overview of factors influencing use of MMC - Product review of OSM / MMC -, timber, steel frames, concrete - market volumes, mix (private / affordable) and trends etc.

FORECASTS - SHORTER & LONGER TERM PROSPECTS

• Forecasts of completions 2010-2014 – market volatility, short term prospects for 2010/11 – length and severity of downturn?  Long term prospects for sector – rate of market recovery from downturn.

• New Coalition Government - impact of Comprehensive Spending Review, affordable housing programme/budgets, Planning, Regional Spatial Strategy plans, Eco Towns etc.

• Net Additional Housing – review of housing targets in England, review of confusion over new housebuilding and net additional housing (including conversions and change of use ) – comparison of forecasts against targets – scale of shortfall?

• Factors influencing timing and scale of recovery – completions, unsold stock, starts.