Almost 90 per cent of SME housebuilders less optimistic than before the election

According to Nationwide, the average price of a residential property in the UK was £271,079 in August.

The government must fix the ‘overly complex, costly, and slow’ operating environment for small and medium construction companies to unlock housebuilding, according to a new report.

Delivery of new homes could be increased by up to 56 per cent – 100,000 properties a year – if barriers to building are removed, according to the State of Play report 2025/26 , a collaboration between Close Brothers Property Finance, the Home Builders Federation (HBF) and Travis Perkins.

“The operating environment for SME home builders… stifles growth and deters new entrants to the market,” Neil Jefferson, chief executive of the Home Builders Federation, said.

“Without real change, SME home builders will