HCA Chair Reveals Equal Split Of Funding For Tenures

The government’s £4.7bn Affordable Homes Programme could equally fund affordable housing, Rent to Buy and homeownership products, the chair of the HCA has revealed. Sir Edward Lister said the Affordable Homes Programme will be “very much a third, a third, a third arrangement” including homeownership, Rent to Buy and “an element of affordable”. Chancellor Philip Hammond revealed in the Autumn Statement that the rules around the Affordable Homes Programme will be relaxed to fund affordable rented and Rent to Buy homes. However, housing minister Gavin Barwell appeared to contradict this. He was asked what proportion of the programme would fund affordable rented and social rented housing. He responded: “What we have done with the Affordable Homes Programme is to give complete flexibility, so I can’t give a specific answer because it will depend on the bids housing associations make from the programme.” Read more on Inside Housing.