Councils Hoard £142m New Homes Bonus Cash

Six in 10 English councils are stockpiling new homes bonus cash rather than spending it on specific community projects. An exclusive Inside Housing survey of every English council found that 60 per cent of local authorities put all of the money gained through the new homes bonus in 2012/13 into their general fund, with just 31 per cent spending it on specific projects. The figures are likely to revive fears that cash-strapped councils are not spending the money directly on services for the community but are instead using it to shore up their budgets. Read more on Inside Housing.

Hoarding of Housing

The Intergenerational Foundation, a new think tank, has published its first report ‘Hoarding of Housing’ which argues that the current housing crisis is not principally about Britain having enough housing but about the way it is shared between older and younger generations. The report shows the concentration of home ownership and housing wealth amongst the older generations and predicts that over the next few years we are likely to see 80 per cent of people over state pension age being owner-occupiers, with 90 per cent of these being single people or couples. Housing Minister Grant Shapps told the BBC: "Whilst this report makes interesting reading, we do not agree that people should be taxed or bullied out of their homes. Instead we will work with families to ensure that housing becomes more affordable over time" - a comment in stark contrast to the government’s approach to under-occupation amongst social renters dependent on housing benefit. Download a copy of the report from the Intergenerational Foundation website.