Scottish Construction Sector Given Boost With 5% Rise In Housing Completions In 2017

There was an increase of five per cent on the number of new build homes constructed in Scotland in 2017, according to the latest findings.

The Quarterly Housing Statistics for Scotland has revealed 17,061 new build properties were made in the year ending September 2017, which is 908 more than the previous 12-month period.

This is great news for the construction industry and those currently undertaking autocad courses to improve their skillset, as it demonstrates a growing demand for those working in this sector.

According to the data, there were 19,440 new build starts during the year to September 2017, which is a nine per cent rise from the year before. This was predominantly led by housing association approvals, with these increasing by 33 per cent.

With regards to the quarter between July and September last year, there were 4,018 new build homes completed – a rise of nine per cent compared with the same three-month period in 2016.

However, the figures were less favourable when it came to new construction plans, as the quarter saw only 4,081 new build home starts. This is 18 per cent less than during the same time the previous year, amounting to 884 fewer homes.

Despite this, the overall number of new build home starts is still higher over the year, indicating many projects were already underway by this point.

This comes after the Bank of Scotland reported Scots typically pay just 20 per cent of their disposable income to their mortgage providers, despite property values having increased by seven per cent in the last 12 months.