Housing workloads weakened in the third quarter as construction businesses faced a worsening credit outlook, according to the RICS UK Construction Monitor.
The headline workload net balance fell from -4% to -7%, its sixth consecutive negative quarter. Private housing dropped to -18%, while infrastructure strengthened to +18%.
These balances measure the difference between respondents reporting increases and decreases, not percentage changes in construction output.
The three-month credit expectations balance deteriorated from -21% to -36%. Financial constraints and planning and regulation were each cited by 62% of respondents as barriers to activity.
Businesses still anticipated modest improvement: the twelve-month workload expectations balance was +12%, down from +13%.
For scaffolding contractors, the contrast between housing and infrastructure offers useful context when assessing their pipeline. The survey does not measure scaffolding demand separately.
