British Housebuilders

<i>British Housebuilders</i> is the first comprehensive account of the corporate history of the twentieth-century speculative housebuilding industry - the firms that `supplied` those houses and the entrepreneurs who created those firms.<br /> <p>The transition from the local housebuilders of the 1930s, through the regional diversification of the 1960s, to the national housebuilders of today is charted via a series of industry league tables.<br /> </p> <p>The rationale for the growth in national firms is analysed. The conventional explanation of economies of scale is rejected: instead, the stock market is found to play a key role both in facilitating acquisitions and in demanding growth from its constituent companies.<br /> </p> <p>The supply-side analysis also addresses the frequent corporate failures: succession issues, lack of focus and the 1974 and 1990 recessions have played their part in equal measure.<br /> </p> <p><i>British Housebuilders</i> provides the first opportunity to review the evidence drawn from a century of speculative housebuilding; it is only with this historical perspective that sound judgements can be made on the corporate role in housebuilding.</p>