Population in the Rother area set to rise to 108,000 by 2036

Bexhill faces a predicament. The population is growing and the provision of new housing isn’t keeping up.

With the average age of a Bexhill person being 47.2 years (compared to the South East average of 40.0 years old and the national average of 39.4 years of age), the population of Bexhill is growing at an alarming rate. This is due to an amalgamation of longer life expectancy, a fairly high birth rate (compared to previous decades) and high net immigration, all of which contribute to housing shortages and increasing house prices.

My colleagues and myself work closely with Durham University and they have kindly produced some statistics specifically for the Rother District Council area. Known as the UK’s leading authority for such statistics, their population projections make some startling reading.

For the Rother District Council area, these are the statistics and future forecasts:

2016 population                 93,116

2021 population                 96,541

2026 population                 100,594

2031 population                 104,554

2036 population                 108,269

The normal ratio of people to property is 2 to 1 in the UK, which therefore means:

We need just over 7,500 additional new properties to be built in the Rother District Council area over the next 20 years.

Whilst focusing on population growth does not tackle the housing crisis in the short term in Bexhill, it has a fundamental role to play in long-term housing development and strategy in the town. The rise of Bexhill property values over the last six years since the credit crunch are primarily a result of a lack of properties coming onto the market, a lack of new properties being built in the town and rising demand (especially from landlords looking to buy property to rent them out to the growing number of people wanting to live in Bexhill but can’t buy or rent from the Council).

Although many are talking about the need to improve supply (i.e. the building of new properties), the issue of accumulative demand from population growth is often overlooked. Nationally, the proportion of 25-34 year olds who own their own home has dropped dramatically from 67% in 1987 to 44% in 2014, whilst 78% of over 65s own their own home. Longer life expectancies mean houses remain in the same hands for longer.

The swift population growth over the last thirty years provides more competition for the young than for mature population.  It might surprise some people that 98% of all the land in the UK is either industrial, commercial or agricultural, with only two percent being used for housing, which means one could propose expanding supply to meet an expanding population by building on green belt where the demand is the greatest. People mention brownfield sites, but recent research suggests there aren’t as many sites to build on, especially in Bexhill that could accommodate 7,500 properties in the next 20 years.

In the short to medium term, demand for a roof over one’s head will continue to grow in Bexhill (and the country as a whole). In the short term, that demand can only be met from the private rental sector (which is good news for homeowners and landlords alike as that keeps house prices higher).

In the long term though, local and national Government and the UK population as a whole, need to realise these additional millions of people over the next 20 years need to live somewhere. Only once this issue starts to get addressed, in terms of extra properties being built in a sustainable and environmentally friendly way, can we all help create a socially ecological prosperous future for everyone.

For more thoughts on the Bexhill Property market, please visit the Bexhill Property Market Blog at www.bexhillpropertyblog.com

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