Zoopla has warned the government that developers need reforms rather than restrictions to increase the level of housebuilding across the UK.
There are growing concerns that the government will introduce an increase in the tax paid by builders to remove unwanted soil from sites in the upcoming Autumn Budget.
Richard Donnell, executive director at Zoopla, said: “While recent planning reforms and affordable housing funding are positive steps, adding additional costs to already strained margins will only make it harder for home builders to deliver homes across the country, and will further challenge delivery in areas where it is currently affordable for home buyers to purchase.
“Further reforms, not restrictions, are needed to boost capacity and speed at the local planning level and new funding should be focused on immediate, not long-term, delivery.
“Building more homes is vital in helping to ease the pressures facing those in the housing market, but the viability of building is at risk from further cost increases and we can’t rely on higher house prices to fix it.”
The cost of building new homes rose on average 17% between 2022 and 2024, due to increases to the cost of raw materials like bricks or concrete.
