More than one in five people in the UK fear they or someone they know could be homeless in the next 12 months – and 77% of the population want Government to support the building of more social homes to address the issue.   A new study, released today by leading social enterprise Places for People, can reveal that 21 per cent of people living in the UK fear they or someone they know will become homeless in the next year.      The worry is even greater among renters – both private (30%) and social (29%) – compared to 15% among homeowners.   Latest Government data shows 3,898 people were counted as sleeping rough across England on a single night in Autumn 2023, and 121 in Wales. In Scotland, 2,438 households reported rough sleeping during the previous three months before applying for support in 2022/2023.    Rough sleeping alone does not tell the whole story of the severity of homelessness. The most recent Government data shows households living in temporary accommodation is at its highest ever level with 112,660 in England, 15,625 in Scotland and 5,700 in Wales.    Meanwhile, according to the most recent available data, there are 1.29million households waiting for a social home in England, 110,900 in Scotland and 90,000 in Wales.    Well over three-quarters (80%) of people think that homelessness is a major national issue and a similar proportion (77%) believe Government needs to build more social homes to address the problem. 81% say Government should provide more funding to prevent homelessness.     Places for People, which owns or manages more than 245,000 homes across the UK including 74,000 social homes, is calling on the next Government to put building 90,000 social homes per year as a top priority.     John Greaves, Chief Impact Officer at Places for People, said: “These figures should alarm us all. What we found has bluntly exposed the worry that exists throughout the country. Sadly, however, they do not come as a surprise – for too long we have been highlighting the seriousness of the ever-growing homelessness crisis facing the UK.   “With renters in both social and private properties most concerned, everything people are telling us points towards a desperate need to build more social homes, although delivering the right mix of all tenures remains vital to ease overall pressure. At Places for People, we’re doing all we can to build more quality homes, including for social rent, and we support those who have fallen on hard times and are being let down by the welfare system, but we can only do so much.    “We know that building 90,000 social homes a year will be a challenge, but we’re ready to help. We see an opportunity to deepen our collaboration with partners and work closely together as part of public-interest-led development groups. This would bring developers, local authorities, members of the public and others together on larger schemes to plan and deliver the quality homes needed in a more joined-up and community-focussed way. This could be supported by giving Homes England greater flexibility over funding to deliver on more challenging sites. We want to put ourselves forward to work closely with Homes England and a local authority on a specific site to trial this model, building on the development corporation approach.     “As a sector, the concerns we have raised time and time again around the need for more social homes have not been listened to by Government in recent years. So, we are now urging whoever forms the next Government to listen to the people of the UK and put delivering more social homes at the top of your priority list. Talking’s over, it’s time to build.”   Places for People is doing all it can to build the quality homes needed across the UK. It completed 1,750 new homes in the last year, of which 86% are affordable, with 265 available for social rent. A further 1,944 were started in the last year, of which 74% are affordable and 210 will be available for social rent.    In addition to building more homes, Places for People also supported over 10,500 people who were either homeless or at risk of becoming homeless in the last year. We also fund, build and manage a range of facilities across the country to accommodate homeless people, including housing pods currently being developed in Bristol where those living there can live independently.       As a social enterprise we also provide significant investment to communities around the UK through direct support and services such as white goods provision, money advice, heat and food vouchers, education, health and wellbeing and more, totalling around £300million in social value per year.   The new study, conducted by Opinium on behalf of leading social enterprise Places for People, is a survey of 4,000 UK citizens. The research is being released in the weeks leading up to the General Election this summer.     Read the full results table on homelessness, including a breakdown by region, click: Homelessness polling data Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

Affordable housebuilder, Orbit Homes, recently unearthed over 18,800 historical artefacts after excavations at its Calthorpe Gardens development discovered archaeological evidence dating from the Prehistoric Mesolithic, Late bronze Age-Middle to Late Iron Age, and through to early Anglo-Saxon times.  The site is now considered one of significant regional importance after Border Archaeology, Orbit Homes’ archaeology partner for the site, discovered the remains of what is thought to be a small sized settlement from the Late Bronze Age to Middle/Late Iron Age along with a later Anglo-Saxon cemetery containing the remains of at least 52 individuals. Amongst the artefacts recovered were finds from the prehistoric settlement (handmade pottery and textile tools) and rich grave goods from the Anglo-Saxon burials (bead necklaces, pendants, personal objects and weapons) in addition to the 9,310 litres of paleoenvironmental samples also taken to help shed light on the human activity of the past. A selection of the artefacts were also recently put on display to the public for the first time during an exclusive event hosted by Orbit Homes and Border Archaeology. Colin Dean, Sales and Marketing Director for Orbit Homes in the Midlands, commented: “The finds at Calthorpe Gardens are fascinating. It’s been an incredible experience for the whole Orbit Homes team to watch the archaeologists undertake excavation at the site and see the sheer number and quality of the artefacts that were discovered. We’re delighted that the location has been declared as ‘significant’ and after all the work to excavate and study the finds it was wonderful to finally share some of these discoveries with the local community as well as be able to help piece together the history of the people living in the area over centuries. We look forward to finding out more about what life was like in the area as Border Archaeology continue their investigations.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

New market insight from up-front information platform, Home Sale Pack, reveals that the conveyancing process takes so long that the average home mover could fly to the moon and back more than 25 times in the time they’ll be waiting for conveyancing to finish. As a result, 370,000 movers are now set to waste their summers stuck in a state of conveyancing limbo. Home Sale Pack analysed how long the conveyancing process currently takes in the UK*, and how many movers are now about to enter the conveyancing journey*. The research then goes on to analyse what other things movers could instead be doing with the time they’re spending waiting for conveyancing to finish. How long does conveyancing take? Conveyancing is the legal side of buying and selling a home with the ultimate aim of first reaching the exchange of contracts, and then completion of sale. The process takes a long time, currently averaging 154 days, or 22 weeks. And while the process is led by a conveyancing solicitor,  it requires regular input from buyers and sellers who need to be available to provide information, sign documents, and help push their sale along. This means that, for those 154 days, movers cannot afford to be absent or out of contact for any length of time because this can lead to significant delays on an already lengthy journey. Therefore, anybody who is entering the conveyancing process right now is looking at an entire summer spent in a state of conveyancing limbo, unable to go on holiday in fear that it will cause delays. 370,000 home sellers stuck in limbo this summer Home Sale Pack estimates that this is the scenario faced by almost 371,000 movers this summer, based on the fact that there are currently an estimated 370,725 properties on the market that are Sold Subject To Contract (SSTC). While some of these may complete sooner, rather than later, this figure is only likely to climb as market activity continues to build momentum following a spring surge. What else can you do with 154 days? So with 154 days of nothing to do but wait, what else could movers be doing with their time if the conveyancing process wasn’t so painfully drawn-out? In 154 days, you could fly from London to Sydney 168 times. You could take one-and-a-half around the world cruises, drive around the world almost 7.5 times, or walk the length of Britain – from Land’s End to John o’ Groats – nearly twice. You could also take 11 fortnight-long summer holidays, or fly to the moon and back – a round trip that takes approximately six days –  almost 26 times. Ruth Beeton, Co-Founder of Home Sale Pack, says: “It’s absolutely inexcusable that in this day and age the conveyancing process takes 22 weeks. There is no good reason for this. If the process was dealt with the efficiency that modern technology now enables, the whole process can take as little as 24 hours. In other words, a seller can accept an offer on Monday and complete the sale before going to bed on Tuesday. So yes, 22 weeks is inexcusable. Instead of wasting your summer in conveyancing limbo, too scared to even go on holiday in fear of causing a delay in the process, make sure you work with an agent who utilises upfront information packs to speed up your sale. That way you can get the contracts signed and the sale completed quickly, leaving you free to enjoy the summer with absolute freedom and peace of mind.” Data tables and sources Full data tables and sources can be viewed online, here Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

The latest research by Zero Deposit, the tenancy deposit alternative, has revealed that while home owners are upping sticks and moving more often, the time spent in rental properties by PRS tenants has increased by 12% over the last decade, highlighting the important role landlords play in today’s property market.  Zero Deposit analysed the latest figures from Gov UK English Housing Survey looking at the number of years spent in a property for each segment of the market and how these lifestyle trends have changed over the years.  The analysis shows that when it comes to home owners, we’re moving more, spending an average of 9.2 years in a property (mortgage buyers). This is the second lowest amount of time spent in the last 10 years with the exception of the 2020-21 pandemic year (8.7) and some way below the average of 9.9 years seen over the last decade.  What’s more, it marks a 13.9% reduction versus a decade ago, with homeowners remaining in their properties for 1.5 fewer years today versus 2012-13.  However, when it comes to tenants in the private rental sector the opposite trend has emerged over the last 10 years.  The average PRS tenant currently spends 4.3 years in their rental home. While this has reduced slightly on an annual basis, down from 4.4 years, it sits 12.1% higher than a decade ago when tenants rented for an average of 3.8 years.   It also sits higher than the average of 4.1 years seen over the last decade as a whole, highlighting the importance of the private rental sector when it comes to providing long-term accommodation for those who haven’t made the transition to home ownership.  Sam Reynolds, CEO of Zero Deposit commented: “Over the last ten years, tenants have grown increasingly reliant on the private rental sector due to the high cost of home ownership and we’ve also seen renting as a lifestyle choice result in tenants staying put for longer.  It’s also fair to say that, with renting itself becoming more expensive, many tenants would rather stay put once they’ve secured a rental property, rather than foot the costs of moving while their original deposit is still being held by their previous letting agent.  While the build to rent sector has looked to provide a solution to the requirement for longer term tenancies, it’s PRS landlords who are vital to the sector and are still shouldering the majority of the weight when it comes to the provision of these properties.  With the Renters Reform Bill also set to provide further security to tenants with respect to tenancy lengths and eviction powers, it’s likely that the time spent in the same rental property will continue to increase over the coming years. This highlights just how vitally important landlords are when it comes to the rental market echo system and why we must encourage investment into the sector, not deter it.  Data tables and sources Data tables and sources can be viewed online, here. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals