Has Britain Stopped Building Bungalows?

BBC News published an unsurprising but yet interesting article today about the lack of new build bungalows.

The number of bungalows being built in the UK has collapsed, despite an ageing population. Why?

It’s the building that’s symbolised a quieter, gentler way of life for more than a century. Bungalows are sold as a dream for those approaching retirement, wanting to do without the hassle of having to climb stairs. They also provide easy access for wheelchair users and those unsteady on their feet.

With the UK’s population ageing, demand for single-storey homes is likely to grow. But developers dealing with rocketing land prices are under pressure to build further upwards.

In 2014, just 1% of new builds in the UK were bungalows, according to the National House Building Council – down from 7% in 1996. The proportion of new homes which were flats or maisonettes more than doubled from 15% to 33%.

The body of the article is obvious when you consider land costs and housing demand and the government’s much publicised crusade to get first time buyers into their first homes. It’s fair to say bungalows simply don’t fit the remit. However, we have an ageing population and a growing number of people who will ultimately be life time renters and an older population who are releasing equity from their homes or are selling to move into renting to access their cash.

Bungalows ironically have been a huge addition to our business over the past year. What the article doesn’t tell us is that there are many developers who have been sat on land with planning for the fabled bungalows for some years and have only held on due to difficulty in securing funds to build and the uncertainty in speed of sales. We have just sold the last bungalows on our fourth scheme in the past few months. Obviously we have negotiated hard to secure the discounts buy to let property investors need not just for discounted price purposes but to secure the kind of rental yields that buy to let investors expect. What better than a discount freehold new build property that has vast rental appeal and great re-sale appeal.

To secure this kind of buy to let property investment simply let us know. We are ahead of the game with regards to most other companies that operate in the buy to let investment property business as we talk to house builders every day.