1. Grenfell exposed systemic flaws in building safety

The Grenfell Tower tragedy was a wake-up call for the housing sector, exposing serious regulatory gaps and poor oversight of external wall systems (EWS). Following the fire, the EWS1 certification framework was introduced to assess fire risk in cladded buildings, but adoption has been slow and inconsistent.

As detailed in the Grenfell Inquiry, issues around ACM cladding (aluminium composite material) and failure to meet basic safety standards led to catastrophic consequences. The National Audit Office (NAO) has since reported that thousands of buildings across the UK still need urgent attention — particularly in the social housing sector, where remediation lags due to complex funding and ownership models.

“The tragedy of Grenfell laid bare the systemic issues in how we approach building safety,” says Mark Cunningham, Managing Director of PriceHubble UK. “It has forced us all to rethink how we manage and assess risks in the housing sector.”

2. Tens of thousands of UK households live in buildings flagged as unsafe

PriceHubble employs a green, amber, and red classification system to categorise cladding risks:

• Green: Buildings certified safe or deemed out of scope based on EWS1 classifications or other assessments.

• Amber: Properties identified as potentially at risk but requiring further investigation

• Red: Buildings with confirmed unsafe cladding or other adverse safety factors, classified as high-risk and prioritised for remediation.

Our analysis reveals the sheer number of residential buildings impacted by the cladding scandal:

• In London, 170,000 households fall into red or amber risk categories, including 27% of all mid-to-high-rise dwellings in the capital.

• In Manchester, 26,000 households are similarly affected, with 46% of mid-to-high-rise buildings flagged for unsafe cladding.

• In Salford, over 7% of all households are in affected buildings — many in privately owned flats and some in social housing.

This represents a nationwide issue, particularly in dense urban areas with significant volumes of new-build homes and tower blocks completed in the early 2000s. The surge in housebuilding often outpaced regulatory updates and adequate scrutiny of building materials, leading to widespread safety issues.

The Ministry of Housing, now part of DLUHC, continues to lead coordination of response efforts.

3. The market impact is devastating for home and building owners

Across the most affected boroughs, transaction volumes have collapsed and property values have plummeted for buildings identified as unsafe:

• In Croydon, sales of red-category properties fell 85% since Grenfell, and prices dropped 33%.

• In Salford, red-category property sales are down 67%, with an average 30% fall in prices.

• In Barking and Dagenham, transactions dropped 82%, and prices declined 24%.

“The financial impact of the cladding crisis is immense,” says Julia Middleton, Real Estate economist at PriceHubble. “For many affected homeowners, these properties are effectively unsellable until remediation is completed.”

Recent NAO reviews and analysis by Inside Housing confirm that sales remain weak across buildings awaiting dangerous cladding removal, with residents facing delays due to limited contractor capacity and complex legal disputes.

4. Younger and first-time buyers hit hardest

PriceHubble’s analysis shows that younger residents are disproportionately affected by the building safety crisis:

• 40.7% of 16–24-year-olds live in flats, and 16.1% live in high-rise buildings, which are more likely to have cladding issues.

• Many first-time buyers used Help to Buy or similar schemes and now face high remediation costs and little chance of selling or refinancing.

This is particularly true in developments of new homes built between 2005 and 2017, which often used now-banned combustible cladding. In addition, rising building insurance premiums and unexpected service charges for interim fire safety measures (such as waking watches) have made these homes even harder to afford.

5. Flats are underperforming the market — and cladding is a key reason

Flats in the UK have underperformed other property types since 2017. While semi-detached homes and terraced houses saw consistent price growth, flats have stagnated, partly due to:

• The second-home stamp duty surcharge

• The cladding crisis

• Post-COVID lifestyle shifts

“Flats have faced a perfect storm of challenges over the past decade,” says Mark Cunningham. “The cladding crisis has only exacerbated existing pressures.”

Industry publications like Inside Housing continue to report on the long-term impact of these safety issues, especially in cities where cladding removal efforts are delayed or underfunded.

6. There are signs of progress, but challenges remain

The UK Government has pledged over £1 billion through the Building Safety Fund, and initiatives from the Building Safety Regulator aim to accelerate cladding remediation. However, systemic delays in building control approval processes and a shortage of qualified surveyors continue to slow progress.

Recent statements from Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, reaffirm the government’s focus on accountability, ensuring that taxpayers do not foot the full bill for remediation costs. Still, the latest news suggests residents of many affected buildings may be waiting years for resolution.

How PriceHubble can help identify cladding risks

To support lenders, insurers, housing providers, and local authorities, PriceHubble offers a dedicated cladding data solution. Whether via API or flat file, the solution delivers building-level risk insights enriched with EWS1 classifications, planning data, remediation updates and fire safety certifications. PriceHubble’s live cladding database is updated monthly, helping decision-makers prioritise risk and track change.

“What gets measured gets managed,” says Julia Middleton. “By understanding the scale and specifics of the crisis, we can begin to move towards meaningful solutions”. This enables faster, data-driven decisions around lending, insurance, building control, and cladding remediation — empowering stakeholders to act with clarity and confidence.