Persimmon, Taylor Wimpey and Barratt Developments are among eight housebuilders who are under investigation for anti-competitive practices by the Competition and Markets Authority.
The watchdog has launched a probe over “concerns” that the firms “may have exchanged competitively sensitive information”.
It adds it has found evidence “which indicated some housebuilders may be sharing commercially sensitive information with their competitors, which could be influencing the build-out of sites and the prices of new homes”.
The eight housebuilders under investigation are:
- Barratt Developments and its group companies
- Bellway and its group companies
- The Berkeley Group and its group companies
- Bloor Homes Limited and its group companies
- Persimmon and its group companies
- Redrow and its group companies
- Taylor Wimpey and its group companies
- Vistry Group and its group companies
The regulator adds that it “has not reached a view as to whether there is sufficient evidence of an infringement or infringements of competition law for it to issue a statement of objections to any party under investigation.
“Not all cases result in the Competition and Markets Authority issuing a statement of objections.”
The body, led by chief executive Sarah Cardell, says its investigation into the conduct of these firms is expected to run until December.
The move comes as the watchdog issues its report into the housebuilding sector and has called for “significant intervention” from the government into the housing sector
It finds, among other failures, that a “complex and unpredictable planning system, together with the limitations of speculative private development, is responsible for the persistent under delivery of new homes”.
AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould adds: “While they may all profess to want to help with the national mission of building more homes – and undoubtedly, they do help – there is also an advantage to housebuilders if the balance between supply and demand remains tight.
“This helps sustain higher house prices and supports their margins.
“In this context, the competition authorities are taking a closer look to see if some of the big housebuilders – including Barratt, Berkeley, Persimmon, Redrow, Taylor Wimpey and Vistry – have been sharing commercially-sensitive information and using that knowledge to make decisions on build-out of sites and the price of new homes.”
The report comes after housing secretary Michael Gove pressed the regulator to open a probe into the housing sector in December 2022, after the government was forced to back down from its mandatory target to build 300,000 homes a year following threats of a rebellion from its own MPs.
