Number of build-to-rent homes under construction falls 11%

In response, the BPF and fellow trade body the Association for Rental Living have launched the Build-to-Rent Alliance, formerly the Build-to-Rent Taskforce, to lobby government on delivery challenges and improve consumer confidence in the sector.

The alliance will raise awareness of the benefits of BTR with local authorities and aim to create a more accommodating environment for new schemes.

Savills’ report found that between Q2 2024 and Q2 2025, the BTR sector grew by 7% in London and 4% in the regions. The total sector pipeline, which includes completed homes and homes under construction or in planning, stood at 293,096 homes.

Multi-family homes – tall apartment blocks in urban areas – made up 87% of the sector pipeline with 254,310 homes, while low-rise, suburban single-family homes made up 13% with 38,785 homes.

The overall number of completed BTR homes grew by 12% in the past 12 months to 132,295 homes, driven by strong completion numbers in Q1 and Q2 in 2025.

Annual completions stood at 4,580 homes, compared to 8,055 the previous year. However, this remains more than double the average between 2017 and 2019.

There were more than 75,435 completed homes in the regions showing 14% growth, outpacing London, which had 56,860 completed homes showing 9% growth.

Homes in planning increased by 5% with more than 109,580 homes – including 68,450 in the regions and 40,680 in London. But in Wales, the number of homes in planning fell by 7%. 

Local authorities with BTR homes in their pipelines also fell from 211 to 215, as BTR schemes were withdrawn, leaving the pipeline of new homes in planning on a year-to-year basis to only 5,000.

The report said the declining figures provide evidence that policy and regulatory issues are making it increasingly challenging to progress new BTR schemes, and risk undermining investor confidence.

The BTR Alliance said: “The Q2 figures also demonstrate the impact that delays at the Building Safety Regulator are starting to have on BTR delivery across England, further depressing the number of schemes able to progress to commencing start-on-site.

“This, along with other viability challenges, is starting to have a mild chilling effect on investment sentiment in the sector, once viewed as offering a transformative impact on accelerating housing delivery.”

Melanie Leech, chief executive of the BPF, said: “It is now clear that planning reform is not enough, and we need to see real action to address viability challenges and allow the sector to reach its full potential.”

The alliance will advocate for the policy and regulatory changes needed to improve investor confidence and tackle current viability and delivery challenges.

It will also produce a new consumer code to improve the consumer experience and perception of BTR within the wider private rented sector as a housing tenure of first choice.