Regional demand gaps widen as supply continues to slip
New-build homes made up a smaller share of Great Britain's housing stock in the second quarter of 2026, according to new research from Property Inspect, while buyer take-up of such properties also softened compared with the same period last year.
The analysis, which reviewed live listings across 20 major British cities, found that new-build properties accounted for 5.8% of all homes on the market in the second quarter. This was down 0.5 percentage points on the previous quarter and 0.2 percentage points lower than a year earlier.
Newcastle was the only city to post a notable rise in new-build stock over the quarter, up 1.2 percentage points, with Leicester recording a smaller gain of 0.3 percentage points. Every other city surveyed saw stock levels fall or hold steady.
The sharpest quarterly reductions were seen in Swansea and Edinburgh, both down 2.1 percentage points, followed by Liverpool (-1.3), London (-1.2) and Portsmouth (-1.2).
Over the year, Newcastle again led the gains, up 2.2 percentage points, ahead of Leicester (+1.5), Bournemouth (+0.5), Manchester (+0.4), Leeds (+0.3) and Liverpool (+0.2). Swansea recorded the steepest annual fall, down 4.2 percentage points, followed by Nottingham (-2.8), Aberdeen (-2.6) and Edinburgh (-2.5).
Liverpool retained the highest concentration of new-build stock of any city surveyed, at 9.2% of all listings, ahead of Aberdeen (8.5%), Newcastle (6.4%), Manchester (6.3%), and Edinburgh and Leicester (both 5.5%).
Nationally, 16.3% of available new-build homes went under offer during the quarter, a slight fall of 0.1 percentage points on the previous three months and a drop of 1.8 percentage points year-on-year.
| New-build stock in Q2 2026 in Britain | |||
| Location | Stock | Qtr change | Yr change |
| Liverpool | 9.2% | -1.3% | 0.2% |
| Aberdeen | 8.5% | -0.7% | -2.6% |
| Newcastle | 6.4% | 1.2% | 2.2% |
| Manchester | 6.3% | -0.6% | 0.4% |
| Leicester | 5.5% | 0.3% | 1.5% |
| Edinburgh | 5.5% | -2.1% | -2.5% |
| Glasgow | 4.8% | -0.2% | -0.9% |
| London | 4.7% | -1.2% | -0.5% |
| Leeds | 4.3% | -0.2% | 0.3% |
| Birmingham | 3.9% | -0.4% | -0.6% |
| Newport | 3.2% | -0.8% | -1.9% |
| Bournemouth | 3.0% | -0.2% | 0.5% |
| Bristol | 2.9% | -0.3% | -0.5% |
| Sheffield | 2.7% | -0.5% | -0.5% |
| Plymouth | 2.6% | -0.1% | -0.1% |
| Swansea | 2.6% | -2.1% | -4.2% |
| Cardiff | 2.5% | -0.6% | -0.2% |
| Nottingham | 2.1% | -0.02% | -2.8% |
| Portsmouth | 1.7% | -1.2% | -0.9% |
| Southampton | 1.0% | -0.3% | -0.6% |
| Great Britain | 5.8% | -0.5% | -0.2% |
Bristol recorded the highest take-up rate, with 25.7% of new-build stock securing a buyer. Plymouth (21.3%), Nottingham (21.1%), Sheffield (21.0%) and Bournemouth (20.5%) also saw more than a fifth of their new-build listings sold subject to contract.
Swansea (+8.4) and Bristol (+6.3) posted the largest quarterly rises in demand, while London (+1.9), Newport (+1.8), Glasgow (+1.5) and Manchester (+1.4) also improved. Portsmouth saw the steepest quarterly decline, down 18.7 percentage points, followed by Sheffield (-13.1), Southampton (-11.9) and Edinburgh (-9.3).
Annually, Swansea recorded the strongest improvement in demand, up 15.1 percentage points on the second quarter of 2025, followed by Plymouth (+8.5), Bristol (+6.6), Bournemouth (+5.5) and Nottingham (+4.5). Southampton posted the largest annual decline, down 15.8 percentage points, ahead of Newport (-12.1), Leicester (-9.0), Portsmouth (-8.4) and Edinburgh (-5.5).
Leicester and Aberdeen had the weakest buyer take-up of the cities surveyed, at 1.2% and 1.9% respectively, while Liverpool and Newport both recorded a rate of 3.2%.
| New-build demand in Q2 2026 in Britain | |||
| Location | Demand | Qtr change | Yr change |
| Bristol | 25.7% | 6.3% | 6.6% |
| Plymouth | 21.3% | 0.8% | 8.5% |
| Nottingham | 21.1% | -3.5% | 4.5% |
| Sheffield | 21.0% | -13.1% | 0.4% |
| Bournemouth | 20.5% | -2.3% | 5.5% |
| Portsmouth | 19.6% | -18.7% | -8.4% |
| Southampton | 19.5% | -11.9% | -15.8% |
| Swansea | 16.2% | 8.4% | 15.1% |
| Glasgow | 14.9% | 1.5% | -4.6% |
| Cardiff | 12.4% | -1.0% | -2.3% |
| Edinburgh | 12.0% | -9.3% | -5.5% |
| London | 10.3% | 1.9% | -1.2% |
| Manchester | 10.1% | 1.4% | -1.2% |
| Birmingham | 10.1% | 1.0% | -0.5% |
| Leeds | 8.0% | 1.1% | -0.5% |
| Newcastle | 5.6% | -1.8% | -1.0% |
| Newport | 3.2% | 1.8% | -12.1% |
| Liverpool | 3.2% | 0.4% | 0.2% |
| Aberdeen | 1.9% | 0.1% | -2.4% |
| Leicester | 1.2% | -2.7% | -9.0% |
| Great Britain | 16.3% | -0.1% | -1.8% |
“While the overall picture remains relatively stable, the continued decline in new-build stock suggests that developers are bringing fewer homes to market in some areas, even as buyer demand remains selective,” said Sián Hemming-Metcalfe (picutred right), operations director at Property Inspect.
“What stands out this quarter is the contrast between local markets. Some cities are seeing buyers engage with new-build homes at a healthy rate, while others continue to face much tougher conditions. This reinforces the importance of understanding local demand dynamics rather than relying on a national picture alone.
“Today's buyers are taking more time to assess value, quality, and long-term confidence before committing. In that environment, transparency and trust remain essential. Developers who can demonstrate quality and provide reassurance throughout the buying process are likely to be best placed to convert interest into sales.”
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