Homes England Extends Help To Buy Deadline

Homes England has extended the practical-completion deadline for people looking to take part in the government’s Help to Buy equity loan scheme, to take account of delays to the sector caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Buyers hoping to secure a 20% government loan in lieu of a deposit were required to complete their transactions with developers by February 28 ahead of the Help to Buy scheme’s end on March 31. But Homes England has now written to participating housebuilders extending the practical-completion deadline to the end of March, which remains the legal completion deadline for the scheme – due to be replaced with a new offer exclusively for first-time buyers from the start of April. Read more on the Housing Today website.

https://www.housingtoday.co.uk/news/homes-england-extends-help-to-buy-deadline/5109931.article 

Councils Told To House All Rough Sleepers In England By Weekend

Councils have been given 48 hours to find emergency accommodation for all rough sleepers in England following an unprecedented, but unfunded, request from the government that all homeless people should be housed by Sunday (29 March). Council officials welcomed the urgency of the request but expressed concern about the difficulty of the task, given the already acute accommodation shortages. These shortages worsened this week after a parallel government instruction to hotels to close. The Local Government Association (LGA) said councils would need extra funding if they were to meet the deadline. Read more on the Guardian website.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/27/councils-told-to-house-all-rough-sleepers-in-england-by-weekend

Less Than 15% Of £163m Community Housing Fund Allocated As Deadline Looms

Just £21.1m of the government’s £163m Community Housing Fund has been allocated less than a month before the deadline for bids passes. As of 4 December, 194 applications had been successfully allocated a share of the fund, while nine were unsuccessful and 81 were still pending decisions. According to data obtained via a Freedom of Information Act request, the biggest share of funding went to housing co-operative Homes for Wells with £584,433, followed by £570,000 for Peak District Rural Housing Association and £535,000 for Bristol City Council. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/less-than-15-of-163m-community-housing-fund-allocated-as-deadline-looms-64464?utm_source=Housing60&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article_link&utm_campaign=H60

House Sales Show 40% Drop Over Year From March 2016

House sales were down by 40% year-on-year in March, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) figures show. The plunge compared with a year earlier is likely to be due to a stamp duty hike for people buying second homes, including buy-to-let investors, which was imposed on April 1 2016. Estate agents reported seeing a rush of landlords snapping up properties last year before the deadline, prompting a spike in sales. HMRC's report said home sales figures for March 2016 had been "unusually high". It also said non-tax changes, such as the EU referendum last summer, may also have caused changes in the property market. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

Valuations Rise As Help To Buy Mortgage Guarantee End Looms

First time buyers in the UK are racing to beat the end of year deadline for the Government’s Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme, before it closes at the end of December, with more valuations being carried out. In September the number of valuations for first time buyers rose by 18.7% on an annual basis. Data also show that remortgaging valuation activity rose 14.7% year on year and despite huge turmoil in the buy to let market over the last 12 months, there has been such a large increase in activity in this segment of the market over the last two months that valuations are 0.4% up on last year. Read more on Property Wire.

CLG Committee Extends Deadline for Evidence

A high-profile committee of MPs investigating the financial viability of housing associations will be flexible over its deadline for evidence, after complaints over timing and “complex” terms of reference. A number of housing associations were unable to meet the CLG Committee deadline of 28 August, prompting Clive Betts, the committee’s chair, to confirm late submissions will be accepted. The inquiry was launched by Labour MP Mr Betts on 29 July to examine the impact of government policies including the Right to Buy, reduced social rents and welfare reform. The Northern Housing Consortium (NHC) said it was not making a submission after a call to more than 100 of its housing association members yielded interest from just one respondent. Read more on Inside Housing.

MPs to Quiz Duncan Smith over Universal Credit Delays

Problems surrounding the implementation of a central pillar of government changes to the welfare system are to be examined by MPs. Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith will be asked to explain why Universal Credit will not be paid to about 700,000 people until after a planned 2017 deadline.  The Work and Pensions Select Committee will also ask about IT system problems.

Mr Duncan Smith told the Committee in July and the Commons in September that the 2017 plan remained in place. But he has now said some people receiving Employment Support Allowance may not be transferred in time. Read more on the BBC website.

Cameron Raises Universal Credit Doubts

David Cameron has raised doubts over whether his government's flagship welfare reform will be delivered by 2017 - a deadline that has already been delayed once.  The Prime Minister said that universal credit was "immensely complicated" and warned "we should not be religious about timings". His comments are at odds with those made by the Work and Pensions Secretary just days ago. Iain Duncan Smith staked his political reputation on a promise that the project, which will see six different benefits rolled into one, will be implemented on budget and within the new timetable. The minister made the comments after a scathing report by the Government’s financial watchdog. Read more on the Sky News website.