18
Feb
More houses need to be brought to market, RICS says
The government needs to concentrate on bringing new properties on
to the housing market, according to the Royal Institution of
Chartered Surveyors (RICS).
Oliver Gilmartin, senior economist at the establishment, stated
that an "urgent reassessment of the procurement route for bringing
housing to market is critical" because the housing construction
sector is facing "continued difficulties".
Mr Gilmartin added that the government will need to make more
effort to attract private investment to the industry.
His comments come as Communities and Local Government released
figures which found that house building completions in England fell
by three per cent in the final quarter of 2009, compared with the
previous three months.
According to the organisation, seasonally adjusted house building
starts in England between October and December last year numbered
21,880.
RICS revealed that this figure is currently 50 per cent lower than
what is required to meet government estimates of projected
household growth.