Releasing Untapped Potential For More Housing

A new report from Savills says housing associations (HAs) have the financial capacity to more than double their output and bring forward 44,000 extra new homes by 2029 through additional asset-backed borrowing. Some form of subsidy is critical to deliver these homes across a range of tenures and to achieve affordability. In the absence of grant, HAs would need to secure land at zero or low value to deliver shared ownership or affordable rent housing. Almost half of the additional financial capacity to become a new class of home builder rests with large scale voluntary transfer (LSVT) associations, particularly larger ones. Download the report from the Savills website.

Councils Hit Out At LSVT Association Deregulation

Councils have warned that deregulation proposals would prevent them holding stock transfer associations to account and make future stock transfers less attractive to tenants. The government tabled an amendment to the Housing and Planning Bill which would allow the secretary of state to limit or remove the ability of councils to “exert influence” over large scale voluntary transfer (LSVT) associations.  This includes giving housing associations the power to remove board members appointed by a council and removing local authorities’ ability to appoint or remove board members to stock transfer association boards. Several councils have hit out at the plans. Read more on Inside Housing.

Housing Association Secures Refunds for 788 Bedroom Tax Tenants

A Kent housing association has used its unique ‘unregistered’ status to secure 788 tenants bedroom tax refunds worth in total more than £500,000. MHS Homes, which owns 8,500 homes, used a loophole to persuade Medway Council to reverse the benefit cut imposed on tenants deemed to have spare rooms. MHS was able to exempt its tenants from the bedroom tax because although it is a large scale voluntary transfer (LSVT) association, it is unusual in not being registered as a provider with the HCA. Because of MHS’s LSVT status, its tenants are also exempt from local housing allowance restrictions (LHA). It is the only landlord in the country whose tenants are exempt from both bedroom tax and LHA limits. Read more on Inside Housing.

CLG Considers Change to Help LSVTs Borrow

The government is considering a proposal to boost the borrowing capacity of stock transfer associations by changing the way they are allowed to value their properties. The CLG confirmed this week it is looking at a proposal from the National Housing Federation (NHF) to allow large scale voluntary transfer (LSVT) associations greater freedom over how they value their stock. Current legislation requires LSVTs to use a system called Existing Use Value Social Housing (EUVSH) to value stock, whereas other housing associations have the option to use a system called Market Value Subject to Tenancy. EUVSH values stock at around 30% to 45% of what the stock is actually worth - compared with 60% for MVST. Read more on Inside Housing.

Tenants Asked For Views on Stock Transfer

Salford City Council is asking tenants to vote on whether they wish management of their homes to remain with Salix Homes, a 10,500 homes ALMO set up to manage the council’s stock.  They are not being presented with the option of the management of their homes transferring back to the council but are instead being asked if they want the current arrangement to continue, or for a transfer to a registered provider or housing association. The council said the results of the survey would ‘inform the city mayor’s decision’ on whether or not to conduct a formal ballot of tenants on a transfer to a housing association. This move could only go ahead with the agreement of tenants.  Read more on the Salix Homes website.

Call for Housing Associations to Collect Council Tax

A West Midlands-based housing association says it’s worth exploring the idea of social landlords collecting council tax on behalf of local authorities as a result of the Government’s reform of the council tax benefit system.  This has seen local authorities consult on schemes requiring all working age residents who qualify for council tax support to pay a minimum contribution to their council tax.  Councils have raised concern over the aggressive timescales for implementation, the challenge of prioritising support and fear low collection rates.  Helen Shields who is business manager at Bromford Support's Moneymates service said there is scope for registered providers to offer and charge local authorities for a service collecting council tax and for the two to work a lot closer on rent and housing support. She said the idea would especially apply to LSVTs whose stock is condensed into one local authority area.  Read more on 24dash.

Council Consults Tenants over Stock Transfer

The future of a North West ALMO is uncertain after its council announced a review of how its stock is managed. Salford City Council is to work with its ALMO, Salix Homes - which currently manages its 8,500 homes - and its tenants on the review. The options include:

• The council keeps ownership of the homes and either has them managed by Salix Homes under the current arrangements or manages them internally with the capacity to access improvement and development funds

• The ownership of the housing stock is transferred to Salix Homes or another housing provider

Read more on 24dash.

What Does The Right-To-Buy Scheme Mean For LSVT Landlords?

New regulations announced by the government will see the maximum discount for new sales through the right-to-buy scheme increase to £75,000, with receipts now available to build new homes. So what do the changes mean for registered landlords such as Wirral Partnership Homes (WPH)?  As a large-scale voluntary transfer (LSVT) organisation, WPH estimates that 7,400 of its 12,400 tenants still have the preserved right to buy so the changes will affect a large proportion of tenants.  Like other LSVT organisations, the capital receipts from right-to-buy sales are shared with the local authority. Given property prices in the Wirral the problem for WPH is that, after deducting costs and the sharing agreement, there will be less than 30% contribution towards the cost of building a new home.  To fund a 30% contribution towards the development of one new property, WPH would need to sell three.  Read more on the Guardian website.

Stock Transfer Councils in Plea over RTB Receipts

Councils are calling for the government to adapt the new right to buy policy, amid fears authorities that have transferred properties to housing associations will be unable to pay for replacement homes. Government proposals to increase the discount available to council tenants looking to buy their homes apply to around 600,000 people with preserved right to buy, living in homes owned by large-scale voluntary transfer organisations. However, agreements made between councils and LSVTs at the time of transfer over how future right to buy sales are distributed mean councils that have transferred stock will be in a much worse financial position than those that have not. While LSVTs tend to retain a set amount of sales receipts to offset loss of rents, councils are left with the remaining sale price. Large discounts of up to 50 per cent will reduce this receipt, casting more doubt on the ability of some councils to deliver the one-for-one replacement housing promised by the coalition government. Read more on Inside Housing.

More Than 20 Councils Miss Out On Decent Homes Funding

Local councils managing their own council homes are set to receive public funding for the first time to help improve their housing stock, as the Homes and Communities Agency today confirmed allocations of £1.6bn to help bring council owned homes to the Decent Homes Standard over the next four years. A total of 46 local authority landlords will share £1.6bn of Decent Homes Backlog funding, with £379m going for the first time to councils that retained management of their homes. The remainder of the £2.1bn available will meet existing commitments to 28 Large Scale Voluntary Transfer housing associations (LSVTs). The funding for councils is expected to halve the backlog of Decent Homes works in the sector by 2015. The HCA said a total of 24 councils that submitted a bid have not been funded, while most, it said, have received a proportion of the funding they bid for. Read more and download full allocation lists on the 24dash website.