THE number of new homes registered in the South East jumped up by 37 per cent during the second quarter of the year, according to NHBC’s latest new home registration statistics.

A total of 7,237 new homes were registered in the South East between April and June this yea, marking a significant increase on the 5,265 homes registered during the same period last year.

It compares to just a one per cent increase year-on-year nationwide – the UK’s strongest quarter since 2007 – with 41,222 new homes registered throughout the UK in the second quarter of 2016 compared to 40,931 in the same period 12 months earlier.

Of these, 31,753 new homes were registered in the private sector, a six per cent increase on the 30,086 a year ago. The public and affordable sector was down 13 per cent with 9,469 new homes registered compared to 10,845 in the second quarter of 2015.

The figures portray a mixed picture across the UK with half of the 12 regions showing an increase in registrations during quarter two, including the South East (+37%) and the North East (+34%) with the other half reporting a decline in numbers, such as Wales (-30%) and London (-29%) compared to the same period last year.

The number of new home completions for the rolling 12 months from July 2015 to June 2016 also increased by six per cent when compared to the previous 12 months (July 2014 to June 2015). This mirrors the strong growth seen in registrations in recent years, resulting in these new homes being completed over the past 12 months.