Seven housebuilders have agreed to pay £100m into affordable housing schemes after a probe by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).
This is the largest payment secured by the CMA under a commitments package and will be split between affordable housing programmes across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The CMA started its investigation last year after concerns were raised about Barratt Redrow, Bellway, Berkeley Group, Bloor Homes, Persimmon, Taylor Wimpey and Vistry.
The regulator found the firms had exchanged sensitive sales information, including pricing, number of property viewings and incentives like upgraded kitchens or help with stamp duty.
The housebuilders have now offered a package of commitments, which the CMA is consulting on until 24th July 2025.
If accepted, these will become legally binding and end the investigation without the CMA needing to decide if competition law was broken.
Under the commitments, the seven firms will not share certain sales information with each other, except in limited situations.
They will also work with the home builders federation and homes for Scotland to draw up new industry guidance on information sharing.
The £100m payment is set to fund hundreds of new affordable homes for low-income households, first-time buyers (FTBs) and vulnerable people across all four nations.
Sarah Cardell, CEO at the CMA, said: “Housing is a critical sector for the UK economy and housing costs are a substantial part of people’s monthly spend, so it’s essential that competition works well. This keeps prices as low as possible and increases choice.
“As a result of the CMA’s investigation, housebuilders are taking clear and comprehensive steps to ensure they comply with the law and don’t share competitively sensitive information with their rivals.
“Alongside these measures, the housebuilders we investigated have agreed to pay £100 million towards affordable homes programmes, which will help communities up and down the country.”