England is on the brink of a catastrophic failure to meet its housebuilding target, with a massive shortfall of over 660,000 homes expected by the end of the decade. According to new projections from property consultancy Savills, the country will miss its ambitious goal of delivering 300,000 new homes each year by an astonishing margin.
Savills forecasts that new home completions across England will average just 167,500 annually through to the 2029/30 financial year - a stark contrast to the Government's target. Over the five-year period, this would result in a total of 837,500 new homes, leaving a significant shortfall of 662,500 properties against the target.
The decline in housing delivery follows the conclusion of the Help to Buy scheme, which provided vital support for first-time buyers. New data reveals that new home completions dropped by 4.1% to 190,602 in the year leading up to March 2025 - a 10.2% decrease over the two years since the scheme ended.
Emily Williams, Director of Residential Research at Savills, warns that England's housing delivery is facing increasing difficulties. She notes that while the sector has shown resilience amidst recent economic challenges, low levels of planning consents and new construction starts are creating a reduced pipeline of homes.
Affordability pressures, elevated interest rates, and rising development costs are further constraining buyer demand and developer viability. To combat these trends, Ms Williams suggests that a new first-time buyer support scheme could significantly improve delivery rates - potentially lifting completions to 198,000 homes per year by 2028/29.
The projected shortfall in housing supply raises critical questions about its implications for property prices and affordability across England. With planning approvals remaining constrained and construction costs high, the disparity between housing targets and actual delivery appears set to widen in the immediate future - impacting thousands of would-be homebuyers.