Housebuilders contribute £50 billion to local economies

Housebuilders contributed more than £50 billion to local economies across England and Wales in 2023-2024, according to new research released today by the Home Builders Federation (HBF).

Ahead of the upcoming New Homes Week (February 3 to 9), HBF has published a series of regional reports examining the role of home building in supporting local economies, improving communities, and delivering essential infrastructure. In total, it finds, home builders currently deliver around 226,000 homes a year, boosting local economies and generating investment money for community projects.

The research shows that in 2023-24 more than £10 billion was invested in affordable housing, £6.4 billion spent in local shops and £1.4 billion was allocated to infrastructure. This included more than £630 million for new and improved schools and £200 million for open spaces, as well as the creation of over 800,000 jobs across the country.

Despite the positive economic impacts revealed in the research, HBF reports a lack of awareness within local communities of the contributions home builders make to local economies. To help address this, it is considering how a “badging scheme”, similar to the blue plaque system, could be introduced to allow the public to identify infrastructure …