But that proves my point that we need to get the public sector involved in housebuilding again.
While there is truth in problems with planning laws and restrictions and land availability, it doesn't explain it all. The LA's went out of the game completely in order to give the private companies more to work with. Land, resources and labour used by LA's become available to the private companies because, according to privatisation, they can build houses better and cheaper. They aren't. Prices are going up way beyond earnings. They're building them to make themselves the most profit possible.
Follow the money. Of course they can't build no houses because they'd make no money. But equally they can't build loads because their profit margin will decrease due to supply and demand. So they work out what level of building will give them the highest profit margin and that's why they build roughly the same amount of houses year on year. It's what they've worked out maintains the profit margin. Ferrari don't build millions of cars a year even though loads of people would like one because they wouldn't make as much profit. They'd make more revenue, but less profit, and that's what they care about.
