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Steep fall in number of new homes ordered

The value of new homes ordered fell by nearly 10% in the final quarter of last year according to official data, despite other evidence suggesting a post-election increase in buyer demand for new properties.

The construction new orders figures published by the Office of National Statistics showed that the value of public and private housing work tendered in the last quarter of last year fell to £3.4bn, down 8.5% on Q3 2019.

The data also showed that the total housing orders for 2019 were 7.6% down on the year before, at £14.2bn. This is the first time that the value of new housing orders has fallen beneath £15bn since 2015. The data suggests the value of work for the industry could level out or fall in 2020.

Housebuilders and estate agents have reported strong house sales since the general election in December, although this will not have transferred into new construction orders in time to be reflected in this data.

The ONS also said that construction output data showed these falls in new orders came against a rosy backdrop for the sector, with value of work done in 2019 hitting a record of £42.7bn, up 6% on 2018. The final quarter of the year was also the busiest three months ever recorded, with £10.8bn worth of work carried out.

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