Mortgage Applications Soar After Coronavirus Lockdown Lifted

Mortgage applications soared after lockdown was lifted this summer, reaching an estimated value of £216bn, however the closure of the housing market means lending is expected to be down compared to last year. Pent-up demand and government incentives helped to jolt the UK property market back to life after restrictions were eased following the UK coronavirus lockdown. The latest research showed that mortgage applications were up 13 per cent year on year in July, followed by rises of 25 per cent in both August and September. Read more on the City AM website.

https://www.cityam.com/mortgage-applications-soar-after-coronavirus-lockdown-lifted/ 

Planning Permission For New Homes Has Increased Significantly Since 2010

There has been a steady increase in the last eight years in the number of home planning applications granted as a percentage of all applications, up from 73.5% in 2010 to 80.5% now, new research has found. This is despite slower market conditions seeing a notable drop in the number of applications received during 2018, down 4% from an eight year average of 471,000 to 453,000, according to the report from estate agency comparison site GetAgent. However the introduced ethos of ‘presumption towards approval’ via the National Planning Policy Framework does look to have boosted approvals, with an increase of 30,000 planning permissions per annum since 2014, it points out. Read more on the Property Wire website.

https://www.propertywire.com/news/uk/planning-permission-for-new-homes-has-increased-significantly-since-2010/

‘Thousands’ Of Universal Credit Claimants At Risk Of Rental Market Rejection

Thousands of Universal Credit claimants could be at risk of homelessness, as landlords refuse to consider their rental application, research has revealed. The report, by tenant referencing and insurance agency Landlord Secure, found that 16% of landlords would refuse to progress an application from any prospective renter who was in receipt of Universal Credit payments. This is despite estimates suggesting that 37% of Universal Credit claimants are in employment. Read more on 24housing.

Planning For The Right Homes In The Right Places - Consultation

This consultation sets out a number of proposals to reform the planning system to increase the supply of new homes and increase local authority capacity to manage growth. Proposals include:

·         a standard method for calculating local authorities’ housing need

·         how neighbourhood planning groups can have greater certainty on the level of housing need to plan for

·         a statement of common ground to improve how local authorities work together to meet housing and other needs across boundaries

·         making the use of viability assessments simpler, quicker and more transparent

·         increased planning application fees in those areas where local planning authorities are delivering the homes their communities need

Download the consultation from the GovUK website.

Housing: Construction – Parliamentary Written Answer

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what proportion of successful applications to the Home Building Fund have been submitted by builders delivering less than 100 units per year since the introduction of that fund.

Alok Sharma: The £3 billion Home Building Fund provides long and short term loan finance to build the homes this country needs. To date the fund has allocated £1.181 billion (40 per cent) to successful applicants. Of the £1 billion short term fund £0.445 billion (44 per cent) has been allocated to successful applicants. The proportion of schemes which will be delivered by small and medium sized builders is 70 per cent. Of which, nearly 90 per cent of these sites have fewer than 100 homes.

6% Of Households Make Application For Right To Buy

Affordability remains a key issue in moderating demand for Right to Buy, says a new report. 71% of respondents said they did not know what the purchase price of their property would be, while 21% said they had a rough idea. The report found there was a regional variance in levels of tenant demand and property valuations, reflecting the different local markets in which the pilot was operating. 27% of respondents living in properties eligible for VRTB overall expressed interest, rising to around a third of tenants in two of the pilots However, at the time of the most recent analysis (November 2016), just 6% of households in eligible properties had made an application. Read more on 24housing.

New Homelessness Duties Could Cost London Councils Millions

New duties introduced through proposed homelessness laws will cost town halls millions, councils in London have calculated. The Homelessness Reduction Bill would require councils to support more homeless people, such as single people and those likely to become homeless within 56 days. Lewisham Council alone estimates the new duties could cost it £2.38m a year. A spokesperson said it might need 40 additional staff to handle the extra workload, which would include creating personal housing plans for an estimated 2,165 additional people. The new laws would also make it easier for homeless people to appeal council decisions to refuse housing applications. Read more on Inside Housing.

Homeowners And Developers Could Be Hit With Hike In Planning Fees

Homeowners and developers could face an increase in planning fees as the Government gave its strongest hint that it was considering new charges. Up to £150 million a year of taxpayers’ money is used to plug the gap between revenue from fees and the costs to councils in officers’ time, site visits and paperwork. The cost of processing applications has been fixed since 2012, with fees of £172 for a typical extension or loft conversion and from £385 to £9,527 — plus an additional cost per square metre — for outline planning permission.  Read more on the Evening Standard website.

CLG Reveals Council Rent Cut Exemption Criteria

The government has published guidance for councils on how to apply for an exemption from the 1% rent cut. The CLG said the number of applications for exemptions should be “limited” and there will be an expectation a council should “explore thoroughly what it can do to mitigate any financial risk without recourse to an exemption, including looking at all contractual commitments”. The guidance reveals the process by which the secretary of state will assess applications for a rent cut. It reveals exemptions will only be granted “where the local authority would be unable to avoid serious financial difficulties if it were to comply”. Download the information from the CLG website.

1% Of Tenants Take Up The Right To Buy

Less than 1% of the housing association tenants offered the chance to purchase their home under a pilot of the Right to Buy have so far made a formal application to buy. Just 443 tenants have put in a formal application to buy their home under the flagship government housing policy since the pilots launched in January, out of more than 48,000 households in the pilot areas the scheme was marketed to. This is well below Sheffield Hallam University projections for demand, which suggested around 7% of tenants would have the means and the desire to buy under the scheme. Read more on Inside Housing.

Government Housing Benefit Fraud Fund 'Oversubscribed'

A government fund aimed at reducing fraud and error in the benefit system was nearly three times oversubscribed by councils. The Fraud and Error Reduction Incentive Scheme (FERIS), announced by George Osborne in November, offers financial rewards to local authorities who reduce housing benefit fraud and error. Earlier in the year, the DWP paid £5.4m to 328 local authorities for an initial ‘start up’ round of funding. According to DWP bulletin, a second tranche of FERIS funding received more than £8m in applications against a fund of £3m. Under the scheme each local authority has to hit a percentage reduction in fraud and error and is set a baseline to measure their performance against. Read more on Inside Housing.

50% of People Seeking Homeless Help Turned Away

Homeless Link has welcomed a halt to the rising number of people seeking help from councils but raises concerns about the options available to those who are turned away. The latest government homelessness figures show a 3% fall in the number of households in England who approached their council for help. However, over half of those who seek help (53%) have had their application for help turned down. There has also been a rise (8%) in the number of homeless households placed in temporary accommodation and over a quarter (27%) of these households are being placed outside their local area.  Read more on the Homeless Link website.

Applications to Hardship Fund Surge By 300%

English councils received more than 13,272 extra applications for an emergency hardship fund in the first month of the bedroom tax.  An exclusive survey of 102 English councils lays bare the full extent of this surge in demand for help.  Councils received 17,673 applications in April, compared with 4,401 in April 2012 - a whopping fourfold (302 per cent) increase. The figures, obtained by Inside Housing under the Freedom of Information Act, are likely to renew fears that the £150 million DHP pot will not be enough to help people worst affected by the under-occupation penalty and wider welfare reforms.  Read more on Inside Housing.

'Bedroom Tax': More Tenants Apply For Financial Help

Bedroom tax or spare room subsidy? The politicians may argue over the title but one fact can't be ignored.  That's the growing evidence of council tenants facing real financial difficulties. New figures from councils in the East Midlands report a rise in the number of people applying for emergency financial help to avoid eviction. Nottingham City Council has dealt with 223 applications for financial help, a fourfold increase on April last year. In Derby, it's 420 households, that's almost as many as the whole of last year. And in Leicester, there were 327 cases - six times as many as April 2012.  Read more on the BBC website.

Huge Rise in Rent Help Applications

More than five times as many people are applying for help to pay their rent since the introduction of new welfare reforms.  Hull City Council has revealed applications to the Discretionary Housing Payments fund has risen from an average of five to 26 a day since changes to benefits came into force last week. Last year, only 25 per cent of people who applied to the scheme were turned down but a lot more are likely to be unsuccessful this time round. If the council were to award 75 per cent of those applying at the current rate of 26 a day, the fund would run out in just a few weeks.  Read more on the Hull Daily Mail website.

Universal Credit – Parliamentary Written Answer

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his most recent assessment is of the preparedness of future applicants for universal credit to submit their applications online; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Hoban: A survey of existing claimants found 78% already use the internet and 74% have a home broadband connection. All our products are being developed using the DWP guidelines for level of literacy required of between nine and 13 years of age and to be compliant with disability legislation. This will ensure that online services are accessible to the vast majority of users. We are also taking the opportunity to simplify the language we use. Jobcentre Plus advisers are helping people who lack the skills or confidence to use online services to develop their digital skills, often in partnership with local charities, libraries and businesses. The Department has installed a total of 2,167 new Internet Access Devices (IADs) in Jobcentres for those who do not have their own computer, and we will ensure that digital skills are a key part of the support offered to jobseekers to help them back to work.

Council Reports Surge in Right to Buy Applications

A Conservative-run council has said it is expecting a 400 per cent increase in right to buy applications following the government’s decision to increase discounts. The scheme received 43 applications from April 2011 to March 2012 compared with 87 in less than six months from April this year to date. If applications continue to flood in the estimated total for the year will be around 160, a 400 per cent increase on last year.  Ten years ago, Basildon Council sold over 200 homes under the Right to Buy scheme, but last year only 20 properties were purchased by tenants.  Read more on the Basildon Council website.