South East · report
People and new homes in South East
In 2025 the population grew by 53,259 while 24,810 homes were finished: 2.1 new residents for every new home.
- New residents per new home, 2025
- 2.1
- Population change, 2025
- +53,259
Population change and homes finished in South East
The population's yearly change, net migration plus births minus deaths (ONS), against homes finished (MHCLG and the Welsh, Scottish and Northern Ireland statistics).
Population change
Show the numbers
| Year | Population change |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 53,259 |
| 2024 | 101,796 |
| 2023 | 140,155 |
| 2022 | 101,196 |
| 2021 | 63,746 |
| 2020 | 26,430 |
| 2019 | 39,814 |
| 2018 | 42,253 |
| 2017 | 48,766 |
| 2016 | 78,653 |
| 2015 | 71,658 |
| 2014 | 83,058 |
| 2013 | 75,031 |
| 2012 | 75,479 |
Homes finished
Show the numbers
| Year | Homes finished |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 24,810 |
| 2024 | 24,800 |
| 2023 | 28,270 |
| 2022 | 31,700 |
| 2021 | 31,720 |
| 2020 | 25,860 |
| 2019 | 33,870 |
| 2018 | 31,830 |
| 2017 | 29,390 |
| 2016 | 24,520 |
| 2015 | 24,540 |
| 2014 | 19,740 |
| 2013 | 19,430 |
| 2012 | 21,480 |
Year by year
| Year | Net migration | Births minus deaths | Population change | Homes finished |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | +43,419 | +32,060 | +75,479 | 21,480 |
| 2013 | +49,146 | +25,885 | +75,031 | 19,430 |
| 2014 | +55,665 | +27,393 | +83,058 | 19,740 |
| 2015 | +51,168 | +20,490 | +71,658 | 24,540 |
| 2016 | +55,198 | +23,455 | +78,653 | 24,520 |
| 2017 | +30,832 | +17,934 | +48,766 | 29,390 |
| 2018 | +28,734 | +13,519 | +42,253 | 31,830 |
| 2019 | +24,940 | +14,874 | +39,814 | 33,870 |
| 2020 | +23,631 | +2,799 | +26,430 | 25,860 |
| 2021 | +61,439 | +2,307 | +63,746 | 31,720 |
| 2022 | +95,293 | +5,903 | +101,196 | 31,700 |
| 2023 | +142,506 | −2,351 | +140,155 | 28,270 |
| 2024 | +100,627 | +1,169 | +101,796 | 24,800 |
| 2025 | +53,818 | −559 | +53,259 | 24,810 |
Births, deaths and moves are ONS's mid-year estimates, each year to 30 June, counting moves to and from the rest of the UK and abroad. Homes finished are new homes completed in the calendar year, from each nation's house-building statistics; England's run below its net additions. A home houses a household, not a person: two or three new residents per new home is roughly one home per new household.
Other reports for South East
Sale prices have an 80% chance of landing between £366,902 and £400,030 by August 2027.
- Expected, August 2027
- £383,466
- Chance of a rise
- 61%
At the average sale price, a home costs £379,953. With 10% down and a 30-year mortgage, the payment is £1,753 a month. The UK sets no cap on the payment; no more than 15% of new mortgages may lend over 4.5 times income.
- Payment, two incomes
- 25%
- Payment, one income
- 51%
Renting the average home costs less each month than owning it. Owning counts interest, running costs and the return the deposit could earn, at the average sale price; rent is the average of all private tenancies. Repaying the loan is saving, so it is left out.
- Rent per month
- £1,438
- Owning per month
- £1,789
25.3% fewer homes were started in the last 12 months than in an average year of the past decade.
- Started, 12 months
- 20,390
- Per 1,000 residents
- 2.1
Figures for United Kingdom: South East has no reliable figures of its own.
Buyers living abroad bought 1.8% of the homes sold here in the four quarters to Q1 2025.
- Bought by buyers abroad, 12 months
- 1.8%
Sale prices have fallen by 3% or more 5 times since 1992. The deepest began in October 2007.
- Deepest fall
- −20.0%
- Recovery from the low
- 57 months
4.9% of the 4,026,333 homes counted in the 2021 census had nobody usually living in them.
- Empty, 2021 census
- 4.9%
- Empty homes
- 196,005
In 2025, 12% of the homes added came from existing buildings rather than new ones.
- Homes from existing buildings, 2025
- 12%