The number of new housing association homes being built has suffered a big drop in the last year, according to the latest figures.
The fall is thought to be attributable to changes in the regulations covering housing associations last year which have made new building less viable.
Overall, more than 14,000 new homes were registered with the National House Building Council in April - an increase of 17% compared to the same month a year ago.
Completions were also up 4% for the month compared to last April.
But comparing February to March this year with the same three months last year shows the number of new home registrations was only 40,399, a 1% decrease.
Of these, 31,712 were registered in the private sector, a 3% increase, but in the public sector, mainly represented by housing associations, there were only 8,687 registrations, a 15% fall compared to last year.
NHBC chief executive Mike Quinton said: 'April's new home figures show that the industry enjoyed a successful month, with registration numbers well ahead of this time last year.
'For the rolling quarter, new home registration volumes are virtually identical, demonstrating further consolidation on last year's levels.'
