Understanding The Growth In Private Rented Housing

The private rented sector (PRS) has grown phenomenally in the UK over the past two decades and this trend is apparent in all of the Core Cities. Remarkably, the scale of PRS growth has not been planned or predicted by national or local government, which raises questions around whether new policy or regulatory responses may be required. The purpose of this report is to better understand the scale of growth in the private rented sector, the characteristics of the sector and those involved, and how all of this is impacting upon the ten individual core cities. The report provides an evidence base and stimulus for Core Cities Cabinet to consider future policy proposals. Download the report from the Core Cities UK website.

https://www.corecities.com/sites/default/files/field/attachment/UnderstandinGrowth%20in%20Private%20Rented%20Sector.pdf

Core Cities Warn Over RTB And Social Rent Cut

A report by Core Cities UK has called for greater devolution of housing policy and funding, but warned government plans on Right to Buy and social rent reductions would limit investment. The report said: “Greater local flexibility to pool housing funds and apply them to distinctive local need will get better results.” In addition it called for a removal of Housing Revenue Account (HRA) caps and greater incentives to develop brownfield sites in order to “capture uplifts in land values”. It also warned that proposals on extending Right to Buy to housing associations, paid in part by forcing councils to sell off their high-value properties, and a 1% cut in social rents would “limit cities’ ability to invest and deliver”. Download the report from the Core Cities website.

Housing Crisis Most Acute in Nation’s Biggest Cities

The Core Cities Home Truths report explored key housing metrics in the Core Cities, finding that if core cities urban areas economically performed at the national average, they would generate an extra £222bn in Gross Value Added and 1.16 million jobs by 2030. The report also demonstrates the severity of the housing crisis in urban areas outside the capital. Despite delivering 11% of England’s economic output and being home to three in 10 people, wages in the English core cities are well below the national average. It’s no surprise then that core cities have seen homeownership flat-line over the last decade, currently hovering at more than ten percentage points below the national average with more families languishing in short-term lets, and more than one in five city-dwellers now renting privately. Read more on the NHF website.