SME Home Builders Sentiment Survey Q4 2026
This Home Builders Federation and Quantum Development Finance survey aims to establish the business sentiment and investment intentions of SME home builders across England and Wales. It should take less than five minutes to complete. Please note all responses will be anonymised.
Your information
Name
*
First Name
Last Name
Company
*
Job title
*
Email
*
example@example.com
Where do you build? Select all that apply.
*
North East
North West
Yorkshire and the Humber
East Midlands
West Midlands
East of England
London
South East
South West
Wales
How many homes do you typically build per annum?
*
1-10
11-25
26-50
51-75
76-100
101-250
251-500
500+
Questions
Please answer as many as you can.
Compared with the previous three months, do you expect your business to purchase more land for development in the next three months?
Please Select
Significantly more
Slightly more
About the same
Slightly less
Significantly less
Compared with the previous three months, do you expect your business to start the construction of more homes in the next three months?
Please Select
Significantly more
Slightly more
About the same
Slightly less
Significantly less
To what extent are current market conditions influencing your willingness to start new sites?
Please Select
Encouraging significant expansion
Encouraging some/moderate expansion
No impact
Causing some/moderate caution
Causing significant caution / delaying starts
How would you describe your overall outlook on the housing market over the next three months for each region you operate in?
Rows
Very positive
Somewhat positive
Neutral
Somewhat negative
Very negative
NA/do not operate in this region
North East
North West
Yorkshire and the Humber
East Midlands
West Midlands
East of England
London
South East
South West
Wales
Which three demand side factors most limit your ability to deliver new homes?
First-time buyer activity levels
Mortgage interest rates
Availability of mortgage finance
Affordability
Low buyer confidence
Housing market conditions
Reduced demand from buy to let/investors
Cost of living
Stamp Duty Land Tax
Demand from Registered Providers for Section 106 units
Other
Which three supply side factors most limit your ability to deliver new homes?
Planning process delays
Availability and terms of Homes England funding/support
Access to development finance
Cost/supply of materials
Cost/availability of land
Cost/supply of labour
Speed of utility connections/infrastructure delays
Regulatory and taxation burden
Development viability
Building Safety Regulator delays
Water issues e.g. nutrient/water neutrality, wastewater
Other
To what extent could the introduction of demand-side stimulus by the Government at the October Budget (e.g. a new equity loan scheme for first-time buyers or SDLT reform) affect your plans for new site starts?
Would give us significant confidence to plan additional new site starts
Would lead us to consider planning additional new site starts
Would not lead to additional site starts, but could bring forward sites already planned
Would have no material impact on our site-start plans
Too early to assess
How confident are you that the new Government will improve conditions for SME house builders?
Very confident
Fairly confident
Not very confident
Not at all confident
Not sure
Do you have any comments or other issues you would like to raise?
Back
Next
Topical questions: Affordable Housing and medium-sized sites
To what extent are you experiencing difficulties in securing viable bids from Registered Providers (RPs)/Housing Associations to acquire your Section 106 Affordable Housing units?
Significant difficulty – Considerable challenges, with very limited, if any, viable bids.
Moderate difficulty – Noticeable challenges, with fewer viable bids.
Minor difficulty – Some challenges, but viable bids are generally still available.
No difficulty – We are consistently able to secure viable bids from RPs/Housing Associations.
Not applicable
In your experience, what are the three most common reasons for Registered Providers (RPs)/Housing Associations either not bidding for Section 106 Affordable Housing units or submitting bids that are not commercially viable?
Lack of available funding or borrowing capacity
Asking price / developer expectations not aligning with RP valuations
High management, maintenance or service charge costs
Scheme size or number of affordable homes is too small to be attractive
Location does not align with the RP’s geographical or operational priorities
Proposed tenure mix does not meet the RP’s requirements
Unit type, size, specification or design does not meet RP requirements
Programme or delivery timescales are unsuitable
RPs prioritising grant-funded or other development opportunities
Other
What percentage of OMV would you consider the minimum acceptable bid for S106 Affordable Homes of each of the following tenures?
Rows
30-40%
41-50%
51-60%
61-70%
71-80%
81-90%
Shared ownership
Affordable rent
Social rent
Discounted market sale
In your experience, what is the minimum number of Section 106 Affordable Housing units that Registered Providers/Housing Associations are willing to purchase on a development?
1-10
11-20
21-30
31-40
41-50
51-60
61-70
71-80
80+
To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement: The Government’s decision not to allow developers of medium-sized sites to elect to make a financial contribution in lieu of on-site Affordable Housing provision will adversely affect the viability of these sites and slow the delivery of new homes.
Strongly agree
Tend to agree
Neither agree nor disagree
Tend to disagree
Strongly disagree
Don't know
Where you have been unable to secure a suitable offer from a Registered Provider (RP) to acquire Section 106 Affordable Homes, and have subsequently sought to agree a deed of variation with the Local Planning Authority (LPA), how have requests to change the tenure and/or make a payment in lieu typically been received?
Very positively – requests are generally supported
Positively – requests are often supported
Mixed – the response varies significantly between LPAs or schemes
Negatively – requests are generally resisted
Very negatively – requests are rarely or never supported
Not applicable – we have not pursued a deed of variation in these circumstances
Other (please specify)
To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement: Section 106 agreements should include a mandatory cascade mechanism allowing the tenure of Affordable Homes to be varied or a payment made in lieu where, after reasonable efforts, no Registered Provider (RP) or housing association can be secured to acquire them.
Strongly agree
Tend to agree
Neither agree nor disagree
Tend to disagree
Strongly disagree
Don't know
Thank you
For taking the time to participate in this survey. Please contact emma.ramell@hbf.co.uk if you have any questions.
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