New home registrations with NHBC fell 13% year on year in the third quarter of 2026, adding to concerns about the residential construction pipeline.
The warranty provider recorded 26,231 registrations between July and September, according to figures published on 26 October.
Private-sector registrations dropped 8% to 18,359. The rental and affordable housing sector recorded a steeper decline, falling 23% to 7,872.
Ten of the 12 UK regions in NHBC’s breakdown registered fewer homes than a year earlier. The South East and Northern Ireland each saw a 32% fall, while Wales was down 24%. Yorkshire and the Humber rose 27%, and the West Midlands increased 10%.
Daniel Pearce, NHBC’s chief strategy officer, said weak demand, affordability pressures and barriers to delivery were holding back the housing pipeline. He called for greater regulatory certainty to support investment.
A pipeline indicator, not a starts total
NHBC’s published statistical methodology describes registrations for its ten-year warranty as a lead indicator of housebuilding activity. It says its warranties cover more than 70% of new homes built in the UK.
The figures therefore do not represent all UK housing starts or homes completed during the quarter.
For scaffolding contractors serving housebuilders, registrations offer one indication of the potential residential workload ahead. They are not a direct measure of scaffolding orders, and individual projects’ timing and access requirements will determine when work reaches specialist contractors.
