Oct 11 2006
Timber frame housing achieved almost 20% market share of all new housing in 2005 and will reach 25% by 2008, according to the latest Market Report published for members of the UK Timber Frame Association (UKTFA).
The year’s increase in market share (up from 17% in 2004) is the single biggest jump the Association has seen.
Bryan Woodley, Chief Executive of the UKTFA, says: “2005 was the fourth consecutive year of growth in UK housebuilding, but overall growth was slim at less than 1% and that growth was entirely due to the health and development of the timber frame industry.
“The collective effects of higher interest rates, delays in planning processes, the reluctance of builders to start new projects with demand weakening and uncertainty over the direction of house prices all conspired to slow the growth of the new housing market in 2006 to a virtual standstill. Other methods of construction experienced a difficult year in 2005 with net volumes down by 2%. In contrast, timber frame volumes were higher by 15%.
“We expect the total number of new home starts in 2006 to be a bit better than 2005. But the picture for timber frame will continue to be very positive – I believe we will see unit growth of about 15% next year. It’s a great endorsement for timber frame which is now firmly established as a mainstream method of construction in the UK housebuilding industry.”
Several other highlights come out of the UKTFA’s 2005 Market Report:
Overall increase in number of units and industry value
The industry produced 47,846 housing and commercial units in 2005, a growth of 11% on the number of units produced in the previous year. The value of timber frame manufacture has also risen 12.5% to a new high in the UK, estimated at £487 million in 2005.
Pronounced increase in medium rise housing and detached homes
Although there was growth in most parts of the market, unit growth was most pronounced in medium rise developments and detached homes. 41.5% of housing over two storeys is now timber frame, compared to 37% in 2004. This reflects the UK trend away from detached and low-level housing towards more apartments and flatted developments. Specifically in flatted developments, timber frame volumes rose by 27% in 2005 (representing an additional 4,278 units), outperforming all other methods of construction which grew by less than 7% in the same period. Timber frame is also increasingly popular at the high value end of the market – almost 30% of detached homes are now built using timber frame.
Strong regional growth, particularly in London and South East
England provided the largest market and greatest unit growth year-on-year (up 27%). London and the South East saw massive increases – up 33% and 40% respectively. The success of timber frame in England was followed by Northern Ireland (up 14%), Wales (up 11%) and Scotland (up 3%). The increase in Scotland means that almost three quarters of all new homes are now built using timber frame.
Increases in market share in both private and social housing
Timber frame housing accounted for about 58% of new UK social housing and almost 16% of new private housing in 2005. However, in Scotland, a more mature market for timber frame, the proportions are almost equal – 72% of social housing and 73% of private new homes are timber frame.