The extent of the impact of Coronavirus on house building has become evident through the figures for 2020 published by MHCLG.

An estimated 127,580 homes were started in the year to December 2020, which was a 16% drop on 2019, and nearly 25% down on 2018. The figure was the lowest seen for seven years.

As for housing completions, they were down 17% to 148,620, from 178,300 in 2019. The biggest regional fall in completions was the South-East which was down 24%. In contrast the North-West only fell by 6%.

Of the homes that were built, 78% were for private use, 21% for housing associations, and the balance were by local authorities.

However, the picture brightened towards the end of 2020 as completions in Q4 hit 46,950, their highest quarterly level since 2007. Starts also increased with a 24% quarterly rise, year on year, to 42,110.

Housing secretary Robert Jenrick said: “Today’s figures show a steady increase in the number of new housing starts and the number of new homes built, highlighting a sustained period of growth in the housing sector as it continues its recovery.”

Government has a target of building 300,000 homes a year by the mid 2020s.

Commenting on the figures, James Forrester, Managing Director of property developer StripeHomes, said:

“The latest market data on housing delivery is quite remarkable when you consider that the country was in enforced hibernation for a large part of the year. With construction restrictions easing earlier than most, the sector was able to roll up its sleeves and build an impressive level of new build homes during the final quarter of 2020.

“This was no doubt driven by the rapidly returning health of the wider market, spurred by the stamp duty holiday, boosting confidence amongst builders that there was an appetite for homes should they be able to deliver them.

“With the holiday remaining in place for much of 2021 and keeping buyer demand high, it could well be the best year for housebuilding that Britain has seen since the 1950s.”