The first big housing news of 2017 is that one of 2016’s most controversial policies is back. The first Starter Homes will now be built in 30 local areas around England.
At first glance, Starter Homes may sound like a good idea: new homes, built on brownfield land, for struggling first time buyers, and sold at a 20% discount to the market price. What’s not to like?
When it was first proposed, we rather liked the idea of finding land … Read more
Many peers expressed worries about the lack of detail in the Housing and Planning Bill during its early outings in the House of Lords. In fact they had an awful lot of concerns about some of the central parts of the bill, like Starter Homes. Many were exercised about the fact that the Bill includes remarkably little detail about how the sweeping reforms to affordable housing will actually work. Instead of specifying these vital details, the Bill will give the … Read more
The brave new world of affordable housing got even weirder last week with two fresh twists.
We have warned previously that the eligibility criteria for Starter Homes risk directing scarce subsidy towards higher earners. But in a new development, it has been confirmed that cash buyers will be welcomed to the scheme with open arms. While, in our upside-down world of affordable housing, mortgage lenders have warned that people needing a mortgage might find it difficult to secure a loan.… Read more
When the government first announced plans to build 100,000 ‘Starter Homes’ a year ago, we welcomed the commitment to get more land released for building homes, and to use the value created to make these homes more affordable than the market otherwise would. We felt that building some homes for sale to first time buyers at a 20% discount on the market price could be a useful addition to overall supply – as long as this was actually additional supply … Read more
Recently I took part in a local radio phone-in to debate the government’s plans to redefine “affordable housing” and divert funding into its new Starter Homes programme. Would these homes work for families on ordinary incomes?
The government hopes people will think so, having announced plans to redefine “affordable housing” to include Starter Homes. Exactly what counts as “affordable” is a hotly debated question, but surely the maximum price of £450,000 in London is stretching the definition too far. We’ve … Read more
The government’s flagship house building policy is 200,000 new “Starter Homes” by 2020. The policy was launched with a fanfare by the Prime Minister during the general election campaign with the words “a home of your own” emblazoned behind him: a sentiment that Shelter would certainly endorse.
However, new analysis we’ve published today shows that these Starter Homes will be a non-starter for families on typical wages across most of the country. In fact, average earning families will be priced … Read more
Update 04/02/2015:
Inside Housing are reporting that Starter Homes will count as “affordable housing” and can therefore directly replace social housing or shared ownership homes on planned developments. This is extremely concerning if true.
New ‘Starter Homes’ will cost up to £450,000 in London and £250,000 outside, which is 11.5 times the average full-time London salary and 9 times the average full-time English salary. While there is clearly a need for more homes at all prices – and for priced … Read more
Yesterday the Prime Minister went to Poole to launch a new starter homes scheme that will deliver 100,000 homes for purchase by first time buyers at 20% below the market value. Beneath this simple consumer-friendly message there is a complex scheme involving several different interventions and changes. In short, it’s half right – and half wrong.
On the positive side, the scheme is a very welcome sign that the government recognises the urgent need to build more homes, and to … Read more
Right now, the government is consulting on its flagship ‘First Homes’ policy. And it poses a huge threat to the supply of social housing. Here’s why what the government is proposing is no solution to the housing emergency.
Last month, the government announced its new ‘First Homes’ policy in another bid to boost homeownership levels. These new homes will be offered to first-time buyers at a 30% discount on the market price, with the intention that the discount … Read more
In March this year, Prime Minister Theresa May delivered a major housing speech as the government published its draft proposals on changing the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) – the set of rules which guide how homes are built.
Our analysis concludes that despite the government’s intentions, parts of the proposals risk resulting in fewer affordable homes being built.
This is because an affordable housing loophole, known as a ‘viability assessment‘, could become both more common and more … Read more
Here at Shelter, we’re all for getting more affordable homes built. It’s the only long-term, permanent fix to our housing and homelessness crisis. But in recent years, it hasn’t always felt like the planning system is on our side. Rules like the viability loophole have made it harder to get the affordable homes communities really need coming through the planning system. But there is one great, unsung hero of the planning system that has been steadily chipping away at the … Read more
We previously sounded the alarm that a subtle amendment to the Housing and Planning Bill allows the Secretary of State to force the sale of a much broader range of council homes than before to fund the expansion of Right to Buy to housing association tenants.
Our brand new analysis shows that to raise the estimated £4.5bn a year needed to fund the generous discounts that make Right to Buy work, the average council could be hit with an annual … Read more