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. View of Bank of England, Royal Exchange, and Duke of Wellington equestrian statue (1844) with skyscrapers and construction in background.

    Navigating in the fog: Why the OBR should hold its nerve on the productivity forecast

    The fiscal watchdog is under pressure to downgrade its forecast, costing the chancellor billions – but this would be premature.
  2. A busy bus full of people of all ages. An older couple smile at a younger woman with a baby in a pushchair

    Everyday concerns: What people want from transport

    Transport has a key role to play in achieving the UK government's missions and improving lives. 
  3. An unrecognisable woman playing a slot machine in a social club

    Reforming gambling taxation: How to lift half a million children out of poverty

    A key priority for the government’s upcoming child poverty strategy should be to remove the two-child limit and scrap the household benefit cap.