Housing statistics: quarterly update, December 2017

Affordable Housing Supply up to end September 2017

Affordable Housing Supply Programme ( AHSP) statistics reflect the broader supply of affordable homes ( i.e. for social rent, affordable rent and affordable home ownership) and include off the shelf purchases and rehabilitations as well as new builds. The social rent new build element of this covers largely the same houses referred to in the social sector new build section of this report. Statistics for the AHSP are available up to the end of September 2017. As a result they have been presented here for the year to end September. This differs from the figures in much of the remainder of this report which cover years to end June.

Changes in the funding programme in 2011 and 2012 impacted on the timing of affordable housing activity as well as the level of activity and this should be borne in mind when making comparisons over time.

Approvals, starts and completions are all measured for the AHSP. Approval is the point at which funding is granted and, along with completion, is a significant part of the administration process meaning that the data should be of good quality. Starts meanwhile can be recorded at any point in the development, for example when site clearance begins or any point up to the beginning of ground works for foundations. As a result approvals are generally deemed a better measure than starts for AHSP data.

Social Rent includes Housing Association Rent, Council House Rent as well as Home Owner Support Fund Rent.

Affordable Rent includes Mid-Market Rent ( MMR), National Housing Trust ( NHT) Rent as well as other programmes such as the Empty Homes Loan Fund ( EHLF) and Rural Homes for Rent ( RHfR).

Affordable Home Ownership includes Open Market Shared Equity ( OMSE), New Supply Shared Equity ( NSSE), Shared Ownership ( LCHO) as well as other programmes such as Home Owner Support Fund Shared Equity.

Chart 10: Annual Affordable Housing Supply Programme ( AHSP) approvals and completions, years to end September

A total of 1,229 affordable homes were completed in the quarter between July and September 2017, a 26% decrease, or 436 less homes than the same quarter last year. This brings the total for the year to end September 2017 to 6,795, down 1% on the 6,877 completions in the previous year.

Between July and September 2017 a total of 1,332 affordable homes were approved. This is 684 (34%) less than in the same quarter in the previous year. It brings the total for the year to end September 2017 to 9,928 approvals, up 12% on the previous year.

There were 1,712 affordable homes started in the quarter between July and September 2017, a 14% decrease, or 283 less homes than the same quarter last year. This brings the total for the year to end September 2017 to 9,287, up 8% on the 8,561 starts in the previous year.

Chart 11 below shows that total affordable housing supply programme completions decreased by 1% in 2017 (year to end September). In the latest year, social rent completions accounted for 60% of all completions, with affordable rent and affordable home ownership making up 14% and 26% of the total, respectively.

Chart 12 below shows that the total affordable housing supply programme approvals increased by 12% in 2017 (year to end September). In the latest year, social rent approvals accounted for 66% of all approvals, with affordable rent and affordable home ownership making up 15% and 19% of the total, respectively.

Quarterly affordable housing supply statistics are used to inform the Scottish Government target to deliver 50,000 affordable homes, including 35,000 homes for social rent, over the period 2016/17 to 2020/21.

Chart 11: Type of AHSP completions, years to end September

Chart 12: Type of AHSP approvals, years to end September