Britain in 2008 will see the fewest home starts in a calendar year since 1945, the Construction Products Association (CPA) has warned.
Based on projections of new building, the number of construction projects to construct new homes will shrink to the point where just 147,000 new houses begin to be built this year, the body has stated.
Such a figure would be 27 per cent lower than in 2007.
CPA chief executive Michael Ankers emphasised the scale of the situation by saying: "To be starting fewer new homes than at any time over the last 60 years illustrates the scale of the problem we now face."
He warned that without action to curb the credit crunch the industry may shrink its capacity to the point where it is unable to respond to future growth in demand.
The figures come a day after the House Builders Association warned that completions may be as low as 110,000 this year and 80,000 in 2009.
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