Think small, build big: Lessons from SME housebuilding in Germany

Article

There has been a catastrophic decline in the size of England’s SME housebuilding sector. This is not the case in Germany, where the SME sector dominates the housebuilding market.

We diagnose a ‘toxic triangle’ of problems facing English SME builders, with mutually reinforcing problems stemming from the planning system, the land market, and insufficient access to finance.

Drawing on experience from Germany, we recommend to government a seven-point plan to give England the greatest prospect of revitalising its SME building sector, thus making a substantially greater contribution to housing output.

Related items

  1. A stack of large shipping containers painted with the UK and EU flags

    Aligning for growth? The benefits of an EU-UK mutual recognition agreement

    Scoping the potential next frontier of a deepening relationship between the UK and the EU.
  2. A wind turbine stands in the middle of a field of solar panels on a sunny day

    The wiring behind rewiring the state: Energy devolution in England

    How the government can give local leaders the opportunities to lead energy transformation locally.
  3. Aerial views of Manchester skyline of new skyscrapers

    Devolution that delivers: Fiscal power for regional growth

    The UK is one of the most centralised countries in the developed world, and one of the most regionally unequal.