Building a brighter future in housing

We are thrilled to be sponsoring this year’s virtual TAI event following a very challenging year in the housing sector.

Towards the end of March last year, we could never have predicted how our lives would be affected in such a short period of time, and following Government restrictions we’ve had to rethink our operations entirely and adapt to critical changes in the market.

The pandemic

Like many consumer industries, the construction sector was subject to a hesitant 2020, however it was one of the vital industries which was allowed to continue. The industry has remained buoyant despite the fact that buyers were temporarily restricted from entering the market and property professionals from across the country were faced with the new challenge of marketing and selling homes from home. Our houses and neighbourhoods became our primary source of mental and physical well-being. We transformed our homes into classrooms, workplaces, hobby spaces and gyms, and consequently more and more people began to think more about their home and location.

The ease of lockdown restrictions saw a spike in homeowners rushing to sell their properties, with many house hunters finally realising what they want in a home, and with some hoping to make their financial assets more accessible during the period of economic uncertainty. A boom in the market followed quickly in summer, and since then the housing market has been not only been coping but, in many cases, thriving.

We’re now emerging from the Covid-crisis and tentatively approaching the next steps to bring us out of the lockdown, and things are certainly looking better for the sector across the board.

The future

Now is the time to turn our attention to creating a vibrant future for the UK housing market, and we believe that building a sustainable future is a crucial element in this. The lasting legacy of our developments is something that continues to drive us and our many partners forward, with a joint goal of enhancing and developing thriving new communities.

This year, we celebrate the 50^th anniversary of our first partnership scheme at Lovell, and this milestone is hugely important to us as our history is rooted in regeneration and working in partnership with local authorities, housing associations and communities to create great places.

As responsible builders, the homes that we create need to be innovative, and they will need to work on many levels and be flexible enough to cope with new and often competing demands. We need to ensure that we consider what facilities are needed locally to improve new and existing neighbourhoods.  

The Welsh Government is currently outlining details on its investment into the green economy and a zero-carbon future, which will see the future of housing transform in a wonderful way.  

As builders, we need to take positive action and build more intelligently to reduce emissions further and it is extremely reassuring to see that economic, environmental and community returns are being considered in decisions from investors.

Future homes panel session: Building back better

We are delighted to be hosting a panel at the event this month, which will allow us to come together as industry professionals to share ideas, experiences and challenges, spark debates, and learn from our peers in the industry.

Our talk will see key speakers from the Welsh Government, housing association and local authority members as they put across the challenges and opportunities to realising a shared housing vision for Wales.

We can’t wait to share our ideas with you, and we wish you a productive and rewarding year.