Conservative MPs and council leaders are concerned that a belief they are building too many houses has cost them support in last week's local elections, despite urgent calls for increased development to tackle the housing crisis.

To mark Right to Build Day on 30 October, the National Custom and Self Build Association has published a letter calling for an end to unsuitable financial tests that act as a block to people signing their local self build Register.

Life’s long shopping list is full of significant items. Your first car. Maybe your wedding reception. That once in a lifetime holiday. Your children’s education. But none is more emotional, symbolic and downright expensive as buying your first home.

The importance of planning cannot be understated. It affects our transport network, our green spaces, our health services, and our schools.

Traditionally, we think people who own property vote for parties on the right, but new research says otherwise,

The tranquil Devon countryside has long been a holiday maker’s dream. Yet the explosion in tourist accommodation and second homes during Covid has seen property prices skyrocket to more than 14 times the average local salary. Georgina Bailey reports.

Years of rising prices and pay freezes have kept generation rent off the property ladder. And despite their heroic efforts during the pandemic, low-paid key workers say they now feel abandoned to the vagaries of a ‘shambolic’ housing market.

At this year’s Conservative Party Conference, the Chartered Institute of Building joined up with partners ConservativeHome, the Royal Institute of British Architects, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and the Royal Town Planning Institute to host a far-reaching fringe event discussion on how planning reform can deliver great homes and connected communities.

Mark Farmer has been presented with the CIOB President’s Award for 2020/21. The award is given to someone within the last Presidential year that has worked as a champion for one of the Presidential themes, a true ambassador for CIOB.

Recognising that the UK must build more homes, quicker, while reducing carbon emissions, the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for the Timber Industries has launched with a new report that aims to provide solutions to the UK’s housing and climate crises.

A national regeneration agency could breathe new life into some of the UK's most out-of-date housing, making it fit for the 21st century.

New Built Environment Lords Committee will look at the government’s housing target, the impact of reforms to the planning system and how barriers to meeting housing demand can be overcome.

With COVID-19 causing many people to feel the strain when it comes to paying their mortgage, an improved Support for Mortgage Interest scheme could help those who need it most.

Retrofitting has the potential to provide benefits for everyone, but it is often misunderstood and underutilised. To achieve Net Zero by 2050, the Government needs a strategy to change this.

The government needs to come up with a plan to help renters deal with the backlog of arrears built up during the pandemic or face an evictions crisis once the ban on removing tenants ends, MPs are warning.

BSA Property Tracker

Paul Broadhead, Head of Mortgage and Housing Policy at the BSA said:

It’s important that the cost of remediation works does not fall on leaseholders who bought their homes in good faith and the government’s confirmation today that the building industry must contribute towards these costs brings much-needed clarity and relief to homeowners.

Chair of the Affordable Housing Commission Lord Best has said policies are needed to break the “cultural reticence” towards later life downsizing if the UK is to address its housing crisis.

When the Chancellor stands up today to deliver his spending review, he should double down on his ambitions for the built environment.

Making our homes more environmentally friendly and better to live in is absolutely essential for both net zero and levelling up.