Start to Finish (second edition): What factors affect the build-out rates of large scale housing sites?

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Start to Finish (second edition)

What factors affect the build-out rates of large scale housing sites?

26 Feb 2020
  
Lichfields' latest edition of the RTPI award-winning research Start to Finish looks at the evidence on both the speed and rate of delivery of housing on sites across England and Wales (outside London).
With pressure on local authorities to meet ambitious housing need figures, this report enables plan-makers to take evidence-based decisions on how quickly sites can start providing new homes, and the rate of development once they are on site.
The empirical evidence gathered for the first edition has informed numerous local plan examinations, s.78 inquiries and five-year land supply position statements. With this in mind, it is timely to refresh and revisit the evidence on the speed and rate of delivery of large-scale housing sites, now looking at 97 sites of over 500 dwellings (all outside London). We supplement this with more fine-grained analysis on sites of a range of sizes, using data on past delivery for authorities across England and Wales. We consider a wider range of factors which might affect build-out rates, including levels of demand measured through affordability, number of sales outlets and quantum of affordable housing delivery.