Huge expansion of Cardiff approved by planners

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-35241858

This has taken so long to approve that the original timeframe now make no sense:

"41,400 new homes will be built between 2006 and 2016, half of them on brownfield sites or old industrial areas. 12,200 homes have already been built"

I'd be surprised if 28,200 homes are going to be built this year...

I think that's a typo and it's supposed to be 2006 and 2026, it mentions those dates later in the story.

Still ridiculous though that this gets signed off 10 years into the plan!

Interestingly the link to this story is on the main BBC News homepage.

I'd be surprised if we see the full number built - 2,800 a year would be significantly more than the peak pre-crisis years. But we might get around 1,800 - 2,000 a year between now and the end of the plan period.

Hopefully we'll soon see a start on some of the greenfield sites that have proved so controversial. Otherwise its a lot of wasted political capital for nothing.

Good news. Housing in Cardiff is desperately needed regardless of what the NIMBY's want. Cities that don't grow, die.

Build baby, build!

I'm really curious what's going on at the St. Edeyrn site, I thought they were commencing in October but I've not heard a thing for a while. Likewise the homes just off J33, the homes just off Llantrisant road near Radyr.

Anyone heard anything about any of the projects for homes over a couple of hundred?

There seems to be far more new build estates going up elsewhere in the region at the moment, maybe it's just what I'm noticing.

Good news... About time Cardiff started growing again. A capital city needs to be bigger than we are.

Just one look at Google maps and compare us to Birmingham, Liverpool and even Bristol.. We look tiny

Plus people want to live here, our kids want to live here...

I'm really curious what's going on at the St. Edeyrn site, I thought they were commencing in October but I've not heard a thing for a while. Likewise the homes just off J33, the homes just off Llantrisant road near Radyr.

Anyone heard anything about any of the projects for homes over a couple of hundred?

There seems to be far more new build estates going up elsewhere in the region at the moment, maybe it's just what I'm noticing.

They're in no rush, with property prices in Cardiff rising steadily the longer they leave the development, the more profitable it becomes. That explains why the "Big Four" cartel of house builders only managed to sell about 65,000 houses last year.

Don't hold your breath for a major upturn in house building in Cardiff.

I agree. It's taken the best part of a decade to get the Ely Mill project to the stage where building is due to start. St Edeyrn's has been mooted for at least two years and so far not a brick has been laid. Dumballs Rd aka Havannah Quay has been talked about for almost a decade and the amount of residential built is currently zero.

The main housebuilders are drip feeding development in Cardiff. Redrow are building approx 250 'executive style' homes in Lisvane but apart from that I can't think of any substantial residential development in Cardiff other than the ISV. That's in a market that has been rising for at least the last three years. They manage the supply to suit their business ends. They have a duty to maximise shareholder profits and flooding the market with 26k homes in under 10 years is not conduicive to that goal.

The only way I see that amount of homes coming on stream in the next decade is if there is a significant building programme undertaken by the local authority. That isn't going to happen.

That may mean that ad hoc developments take place without sufficient changes to infrastructure. The worst of all worlds.

The landbanking by the big boys of the house building business is a real problem. The market has failed. Either incentives for building or penalties for landbanking need to be introduced to get things moving.

This piece in today's Guardian is rather timely -

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2016 ... s-lga-says

The highlights -

475,000 new homes in England and Wales have planning permission but have yet to be built. Puts complaints about the archaic and obstructive planning system into perspective.

The 9 biggest housbuilders are sitting on plots where 615,152 homes could be built.

There may be reasons other than housbuilders trying to manipulate the market for the lack of building such as a shortage of materials or skilled labour. But it does seem that until there is a stick and/or carrot the main housebuilders will not be rushed into construction.