Demand for Social Housing to Soar

The government needs to distinguish between social and affordable housing and set out how demand for both will be met, an accountancy firm has warned. Accountant and business advisor Beevers and Struthers has said a ‘blurring of the lines’ between the types of home coupled with spending cuts will see demand for social housing increase over the next four years. The government has said it wants to see 150,000 affordable homes built over the next four years, but around 90,000 of these are expected to be for its new ‘affordable rent’ tenure. This will see them let at up to 80 per cent of market rent. The remaining 60,000 will be for social rent, but the funding for these was agreed before the coalition government came to power. Beevers and Struthers has calculated the government will fall short of its 150,000 home aim, with the higher rents only allowing 131,000 homes to be built. It notes the 2004 Barker review called for 54,000 social homes a year to be built. Read more on The Guardian website.