UK Needs 400,000 New Construction Workers Per Year To Solve Housing Shortage

Much like the U.S., the United Kingdom is facing a housing crisis where a lack of available homes is driving up prices and lowering affordability. The country will have to do something drastic to fix it.

Business Insider reports that, according to the consultancy firm Arcadis, the UK will need to add 1.5 million construction workers through 2021 to help build housing. That works out to about 400,000 new laborers per year, or a hire every 77 seconds. Construction employment, though, is down 15 percent from 2008.

Homes in the UK are tremendously expensive. The average first-time home costs £402,692, which is equivalent to $501,760.

Britain's housing problem is most acute in London, where it now takes an average of nearly 26 years for a couple living in London with one child to save for a home deposit.

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