ONLY 80% of the homes needed to meet demand are being built in Scotland , according to a new report.
The Homes for Scotland (HFS) study found around 20,000 homes were constructed in 2018 – around 80% of pre-recession levels.
The report said the lack of new homes, especially in the main cities, has caused “significant affordability issues”, especially for younger people, and has increased “wealth inequalities”.
It has also created difficulties for older people, with a dearth of suitable quality housing for a rapidly increasing elderly population.
The HFS report said housebuilding contributes £570 million annually to Government finances and constructing more homes would bring a range of benefits.
HFS chief executive Nicola Barclay said: “Building the homes that Scotland requires is crucial to our country’s wider social wellbeing and economic success.
“This report highlights the different measures which can be used to assess this value in areas which are often not recognised.
“These include the environment, the regeneration of areas of deprivation and training and apprenticeships.
“What it also shows, however, is that we still aren’t building at the level required to meet housing need and demand and to unlock the broader benefits this would offer.
“This is detrimental to our growing population in terms of affordability, market volatility and increasing intergenerational wealth inequality.”
The report said homebuilding in Scotland supports more than 80,000 jobs, which would increase to more than 100,000 jobs if construction returned to pre-recession levels.
The research also found the industry views the planning system as a major constraint in building enough units.
John Boyle, director of research and strategy at Rettie & Co, who led the research team, said: “Many of the ‘softer’ impacts of development often go unnoticed.
“It is clear from the evidence that development has knock-on consequences for improving health, educational attainment and social opportunities for communities.
“It does this by improving the quality of place, including in areas of long-term decline, as evidence from the Transformational Regeneration Areas in Glasgow have demonstrably shown in recent years.”
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