Ben Roskrow editor’s comment The great Help to Buy debate This edition of <strong>Housebuilder</strong> sees us publish our annual Top 25 housebuilders table, part of the Housing Market Intelligence report that is published on <strong>October</strong> 11 at the HMI conference in London. The report is an essential tool for anyone involved in the business of UK housebuilding, packed as it is with information, analysis, data, infographics and tables including the full Top 75 housebuilders listing with the firms ranked by seven metrics including turnover, units built, profit, land and people employed. year on year increase On pages 27 to 44 of this magazine, HMI report editor Brian Green previews some of its findings and reveals the Top 25 housebuilders this year. The figures show that the top housebuilders continue to increase the number of units being built year on year. In the period covered by the report the Top 10 firms completed 80,700 new homes, 5.2% up on the previous 76,700, while the Top 25 reached 108,600, 7.4% up on 101,100 in the previous period. In Green’s analysis of the figures he points out that the Top six firms – Barratt, Taylor Wimpey, Persimmon, Bellway, Berkeley and Redrow – have increased their annual production of homes by 71% between 2009 and 2017. Turnover growth is easing among these top firms, but encouragingly the next cohort down, the bottom end of the Top 25, is demonstrating the fastest growth in turnover. And lower down there are smaller firms growing into the higher ranks of the tables. The industry argues that these are impressive figures, that it is doing its bit to increase new homes supply while staying mindful of the need to grow at a sensible rate and to maintain quality as they grow. <strong>Housebuilder</strong>s argue that this increase in units is at least partly due to the success of the Help to Buy equity loan initiative which is now five years old. Over the past few weeks the future of the initiative has been the subject of much discussion as the industry looks for certainty and its continuation beyond its present finishing date of 2021. Several housebuilders have called for the scheme to be extended and are hoping for an announcement on this in chancellor Philip Hammond’s Autumn statement. The Home Builders Federation has come out strongly in favour of extending the initiative, publishing a report on the success of Help to Buy. HBF points out that the initiative has achieved all the targets specified at launch – it has increased home ownership, increased housing supply and generated economic activity. The report was issued as some media voices have been raised against the scheme. Ben Marlow, deputy business editor at the Daily Telegraph, has been particularly critical of Help to Buy, calling it a “dismal failure” that has pumped up house prices and helped the wealthy to buy. When the industry defends Help to Buy it is faced with the Mandy Rice-Davis line – “They would do, wouldn’t they?” This must be a source of immense frustration to housebuilders and their supporters. The industry argues that the facts on Help to Buy are impressive and convincing – it says that more than four out of five of Help to Buy purchases are to first time buyers, median household income is £49,000 and new build house price rises remain consistent with the second hand market. why the fuss? So why the fuss? Why is the industry so worried about what will happen to Help to Buy in the future? The problem is arguments are not always only won on facts and data – they can be won on sentiment, passion and emotion. There is a feeling away from the industry that some housebuilders are benefiting excessively from Help to Buy and this is damaging the arguments in favour. It is to be hoped that the government will see beyond this to the bigger picture. Help to Buy was brought in to increase new homes supply. The HMI report figures show that this is happening. If it needs to be amended, tweaked, targeted, then that’s fine – but it needs to be extended beyond 2021. hb It is to be hoped that the government will see the bigger picture – Help to Buy needs to be extended, in some form, beyond 2021 housebuilder october <strong>2018</strong> 5