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By: Melanie Leech

All 3 Articles
  • It’ll take more than planning reform to get London building again

    Opinion

    London isn’t just facing a housing delivery downturn. It’s facing a double development whammy of falling housing starts combined with a deep decline in the pipeline of new commercial development coming forward, says Melanie Leech Down, down, deeper and down go the lyrics from a track by Status Quo from the early 1970s. A decade [...]

    Skyline of the City of London financial district with modern skyscrapers and historic landmarks under a clear blue sky
  • The real reason Britain doesn’t build

    Opinion

    Planning isn’t the only reason we have a housing shortage, too many developments just aren’t economically viable, says Melanie Leech The government is undoubtedly right to focus its efforts on reforming the planning system. Ask the anyone in the property industry and they will say that the system is complex, burdensome, under-resourced, and prone to [...]

    But is planning the only reason why, in many parts of the country, development activity has slowed to a crawl and obvious development sites and opportunities remain dormant and undelivered? No!
  • Build, Baby, Build: A manifesto for London’s fourth housing boom

    Build, Baby, Build

    There is a vast amount of capital waiting to be invested in London housing, here’s how the British Property Federation’s Melanie Leech would unlock it… London needs another housing boom. The late 19th century created the Victorian terraces of Zones two and three, the 1930’s ‘Metroland’ developments built much of today’s outer suburbs and the [...]

    Renting in the UK has become more and more expensive, with London a key focus.

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