House prices boomed, and so too did buy-to-let. It was at this point that the house price crisis began, like a runaway train.
It looks very likely Sir Keir will also inherit an economy in recovery next month. Interest rates will start to fall this year and things could again start to look rosy very quickly – property prices included. House prices have proved remarkably resilient, surviving the recent mortgage rate squeeze. Surely, the only way is up?
But this is news Labour won’t want to hear. It wants to make homes more affordable for buyers and has pledged to boost supply, saying it will build more homes and ensure more of them are allocated as affordable housing. It will also bring back mandatory building targets for local councils, put more resources into planning and free up more green belt land.
Although, Labour, of course, won’t be building any homes. It faces the same challenges as the Tories, and its policies aren’t much different from theirs either. Neither can it compel developers to build any.
For housing supply to increase, the nation’s housebuilders need to have real incentive. They aren’t going to lay a single brick until they know they can make money.
Data this week revealed that since 2015, planning permission has been granted for one million homes that still have not been built. Developers sit on land and eke out homes, controlling their supply to maximise profits.
Britain is also facing a skills shortage. Homes are increasingly expensive to construct and there aren’t enough people qualified to build them.