As an SME building company, it’s disappointing when we read that ‘forty years ago SME house builders delivered 40% of our homes, today this figure is just 12%’.
We are fortunate enough to work with developers across Bristol on house conversions, multi occupancy housing and small property developments. We often discuss with our clients, and with fellow developers at property events across Bristol, the difficulties faced with the planning process when it comes to larger sites with multiple properties. Even though there is a clear appetite from smaller house builders to play their part in providing housing to support the demand across the UK, why is it becoming increasingly difficult to compete with the larger firms?
Some of the biggest barriers we commonly discuss include:
- The delays securing planning to allow commencement of works
- Finding available and suitable land in the beginning, how can small companies compete with the larger corporate?
- The rising costs associated when planning. The risk of costs you incur upfront when planning can never be guaranteed
Whilst there isn’t a quick fix, as a proud member of the federation of master builders, it’s great to see their campaign to support change to reversing the decline in SME house builders.
Their goal is to work directly with government and opposition to see:
- A simplified planning system
- Make more small sites available for SME developers
- Investment in local authority planning departments to speed up the planning process
Whilst progress has been made there is still a long way to go, read the full article here on how you can support.
