IN-PERSON: Livable Cities – New York

Abstract

House prices in the UK have risen in the last ten years, yet house construction is at its lowest level since 1924. According to estimates, Britain will face a housing shortage of roughly a million homes by 2025 in a nation where up to 70% of adults are accustomed to owning their own home. The UK is known to have the highest rates of homeownership in Europe, but it is getting more difficult due to lack of affordable housing as a result of low affordability due to low wages and high standard of living increases. The aim of this study is to investigate how the use of Panelised systems and materials can increase the current housing shortage. The housing industry is generally dominated by traditional method of construction which uses bricks and blocks material and results to a limited range of products to resolve this housing crisis. The methodology adopted will be the use of both qualitative and quantitative data which includes carrying out extensive literature review and questionnaire from fifty-three respondents. The findings suggest that the housing shortage in London is a crisis that stems from affordability/availability and subsequently suggests the adoption of Panelised Offsite Construction as a smart and affordable solution to the problem. However, it is necessary to implement new policies that would effectively support, stimulate, and maintain housing growth. This outcome will be used to understand how best to implement modern methods of construction.