Right to Buy Scheme: Housing Associations – Parliamentary Written Answer

 tephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to extend right to buy to housing association tenants after the completion of the 2017 pilot scheme.

Christopher Pincher: The Government remains committed to the Right to Buy and to spreading the dream of home ownership to even more people. The Midlands pilot of the Voluntary Right to Buy scheme completed this year and has been fully evaluated. The Government is looking at the findings, which will be used to inform future policy. As set out in the 2019 manifesto, the Government will evaluate new pilot areas and we will be announcing more details on that.

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2021-09-03/41867

Rents Outside London Soaring At Fastest Rate On Record

Private rents outside London are rising at their fastest rate for 13 years, research suggests, as tenants making plans for life post-pandemic compete for properties. The property website Zoopla said average rents across the UK outside the capital rose by 5% over the 12 months to the end of July – adding more than £450 to a typical annual rent bill – the biggest increase since its index began in 2008. However, locations popular with tenants quitting London and other big cities after reevaluating their lifestyle have seen rents jump by a lot more – up to 25%, according to some estate agents. Read more on the Guardian website.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/sep/08/rents-outside-london-soaring-at-fastest-rate-on-record-agencies-say

Rising House Prices See Borrowers Paying Mortgages Off Beyond Retirement

A significant number of borrowers are attempting to stretch mortgage terms to 35 or even forty years, with ‘maximum age at end of term’ the most-searched term by brokers in August. This backs up research which showed a 70% rise in 35 year-plus mortgages over the past two years. This trend for elongated mortgages is potentially a result of rapidly increasing house prices. With higher prices creating affordability issues, some borrowers are looking to spread their mortgage out over a longer time period to lower the monthly repayments. ‘Income multiple used for affordability assessment’, was the second most-searched term in the residential market in August. Read more on the Property Reporter website.

https://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/finance/rising-house-prices-see-growing-number-of-borrowers-paying-mortgages-off-beyond-retirement.html 

Green Homes Grants Cost £1,000 In Admin For Each Household That Benefited

A scheme to make homes cosier and greener racked up administration costs of £1,000 for each household that benefited, the Whitehall spending watchdog said. The flagship green homes grant scheme was rushed, caused frustration for homeowners and installers and had lower benefits in cutting carbon and creating jobs than it could have done, the National Audit Office (NAO) said. The programme was launched in September 2020 as a six-month “green” pandemic recovery measure, and closed in March 2021 having been extended and then curtailed again in the face of problems with its delivery. Read more on the ITV website.

https://www.itv.com/news/2021-09-07/green-homes-grants-cost-1000-in-admin-for-each-household-that-benefited--nao

House Prices Hit Record High Despite Cut In Stamp Duty Break

The average UK house price reached a fresh record high in August while annual inflation cooled to a five-month low, after the partial end of the stamp duty holiday in England and Northern Ireland. Halifax, one of the country’s biggest mortgage lenders, said the average cost of a property increased by 0.7%, or £1,789, to £262,954, topping the previous peak of £261,642 recorded in May. The annual rate of house price inflation slowed to 7.1%, the lowest since March and down from 7.6% in July. However, compared with June 2020, when the housing market began to reopen after the first Covid-19 lockdown, prices remain more than £23,600, or 9.9%, higher. Read more on the Guardian website.

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2021/sep/07/uk-house-prices-stamp-duty-august-halifax 

More Than One In Six Social Homes ‘Uneconomical’ To Upgrade To Net Zero

In its annual Housing Sector Survey consultancy Savills identified a significant shift towards investment in existing homes. A poll of 138 social housing providers found that 30% expect the need to increase spending in current stock to affect their development programmes. Stock investment, driven by the building safety and zero-carbon agendas, was cited as a top priority by 85% more respondents than in the 2020 survey. Those which have crunched the numbers expect an average cost of £20,600 per home to get their housing stocks to net zero, the research found. But 37% of providers have not yet factored these huge costs into their business plans. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/news/more-than-one-in-six-social-homes-uneconomical-to-upgrade-to-net-zero-research-finds-72443 

Number Of Sub-1% Mortgage Deals Rises To 86

The number of lenders offering sub-1% mortgage products has increased from just 1 in March to 12 by July, according to analysis by Trussle. Its data shows that there are now 86 deals with an interest rate of 0.9% or lower. Two-year fix rates are the most popular term type for sub-1% products, with 74% of leads coming from remortgage customers. Despite the growth in sub-1% products, just 2% of all enquiries to Trussle were for these types of mortgages in July. Read more on the Financial Reporter website.

https://www.financialreporter.co.uk/mortgages/number-of-sub-1-mortgage-deals-rises-to-86.html 

Demand For Rental Home Mortgages Surges

The boom in domestic holidays has fuelled a surge in demand for mortgages for UK holiday rental homes as landlords and investors cash in on people taking breaks in Britain. The number of “holiday let” mortgage deals on the market has more than doubled in a year, reflecting what one mortgage broker said had been “really incredible interest” this year. Its findings coincided with an analysis of government figures by the real estate adviser firm Altus Group that showed more than 11,000 second home owners in England had “flipped” their properties to become holiday lets since the start of the pandemic in order to capitalise on the booming market. Read more on the Guardian website.

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2021/sep/06/uk-rental-home-mortgage-demand-surges-domestic-holiday-boom 

More Than 11,000 Properties Flipped To Holiday Homes Amid Staycation Boom

 More than 11,000 second-home owners in England have flipped their properties to become holiday lets since the start of the pandemic, to capitalise on soaring demand for staycations. New analysis of government figures shows that the number of holiday homes trading as businesses has jumped by more than a fifth since the pandemic hit. The data shows that there are now 67,578 homes in England classified as holiday homes which have been flipped to become commercial premises, compared with 56,102 properties in March last year. Read more on the ITV website.

https://www.itv.com/news/2021-09-05/more-than-11000-properties-flipped-to-holiday-homes-amid-staycation-boom

Housebuilding Growth Rate ‘Slowest For 15 Months’

The rate of growth in housebuilding work fell to its lowest level last month since the height of the coronavirus pandemic in May 2020, as materials and labour shortages continue to bite. According to the latest construction purchasing managers’ index from IHS Markit and CIPS, the housebuilding industry recorded a score of 55 – still above the “50” mark that denotes growth – but the lowest level seen since the industry was effectively temporarily shut down in spring last year. This is also the first time that the housebuilding industry has recorded an index score of less than 60 since February this year. Read more on the Housing Today website.

https://www.housingtoday.co.uk/news/housebuilding-growth-rate-slowest-for-15-months/5113568.article 

Nottingham Predicted To Fall Short Of Housing Demand By More Than 4,000 Homes

Nottingham could fall short of the demand for housing by more than 4,000 homes, according to the latest predictions. The issue will be raised during a Nottingham City Council strategic planning and transport committee meeting, as the latest predictions show the city is set to fall short of its estimated housing need by 4,411 properties. However the city council says it has plans to produce a new strategic plan later this year, working alongside other local authorities across the Greater Nottingham area, to "ensure the demand is met". Read more on the Nottingham Live website.

https://www.nottinghampost.com/news/nottingham-news/nottingham-predicted-fall-short-housing-5867183 

Grenfell Tower Set To Be Demolished Over Safety Concerns

Ministers are expected to announce that Grenfell Tower will be demolished because of safety concerns, more than four years after the fire that killed 72 people. Robert Jenrick, the housing secretary, has been told that the building poses a risk to the local community including a secondary school located near the charred remains. Senior Whitehall sources told the Sunday Times that structural engineering experts hired by the government had “unambiguously and unanimously” advised that the tower should be “carefully taken down”. Read more on the Guardian website.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/sep/04/grenfell-tower-set-to-be-demolished-over-safety-concerns

Property Purchases Funded By Equity Release More Than Double In 2021

Over-55s keen to take advantage of the stamp duty holiday drove a 116% year-on-year increase in the number of people using equity release for property purchase, new research from more2life shows. The increase coincides with the introduction of the stamp duty holiday in July 2020 and highlights how over-55s are increasingly using equity release to help them move home – often to be close to family, friends or amenities. Property purchase cases increased by 208% between H1 2020 and H2 2020 and while this started to slow as the SDLT holiday deadline loomed. Read more on the Financial Reporter website.

https://www.financialreporter.co.uk/later-life/property-purchases-funded-by-equity-release-more-than-double-in-2021.html 

Complaints To Housing Ombudsman Rise By 21%

Complaints and enquiries to the Housing Ombudsman increased 21% in the first three months of 2020/21, having already risen sharply last year. The complaints arbitration service revealed that it received 7,276 enquiries and complaints over the period, up from 6,010 in the previous three months. The number is also 230% higher than for between April and June 2020 – although that quarter saw a 41% drop compared with the previous year amid the first coronavirus lockdown. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/complaints-to-housing-ombudsman-rise-by-21-72385?utm_source=Housing60&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article_link&utm_campaign=H60 

UK Enjoys Property Sales Boom Amid Covid-19 Pandemic

Hard-to-sell homes are being snapped up by the hundred as Britain’s booming property market maintains a year-long breakneck sales record. In areas of high demand, even the most knocked-about and idiosyncratic houses are spending just days on the market once buyers, desperate to grab something, see that predictions of a house price crash are proving off the mark. While the property merry-go-round screeched to a temporary halt during the first lockdown early last year, the pause did not last. With sales barely slowing over the summer, the data is clear: along with technology, real estate has emerged as one of the pandemic’s boom sectors. Read more on the Guardian website.

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2021/sep/03/uk-enjoys-property-sales-boom-amid-covid-19-pandemic 

House Price Rises Accelerate

UK house prices accelerated in August, the Nationwide has said, with values now 13% higher than before the pandemic. The building society said that annual house price growth sped up, to 11%, with the average home costing £248,857. It said property prices recorded their second largest month-on-month rise in 15 years, up by 2.1%. The Nationwide said the increase was "surprising", given that the benefit from stamp duty holidays was reduced. Read more on the BBC website.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-58399869 

Higher Energy Efficiency Has Only ‘Modest’ Influence On House Prices

The house price premium for a property with a higher energy rating – A or B – is just 1.7% compared to a D-rated home, new research from Nationwide shows. At the other end of the scale, houses rated F or G run with a 3.5% discount over a D-rated property, the lender’s report adds. These values are likely to change over time, however, especially if the government takes measures to incentivise greater energy efficiency in future to help ensure the UK meets its climate change obligations.  Regulation means that socially rented houses have the highest energy efficiency ratings, followed by privately rented stock. Read more on the Mortgage Strategy website.

https://www.mortgagestrategy.co.uk/news/higher-energy-efficiency-has-only-modest-influence-on-house-prices/ 

£8.6 Billion For Affordable Homes

 Thousands of people will be helped onto the housing ladder as funding worth £8.6 billion is allocated across the country. Part of the largest single investment in affordable housing in a decade, the Affordable Homes Programme funding will deliver around 119,000 homes, including 57,000 for ownership, 29,600 for social rent and 6,250 affordable rural homes. The cash injection could support up to 370,000 jobs across the country for homebuilders, SME developers, and wider businesses supporting the house building industry such as electricians and plumbers. This is expected to generate up to £26 billion of other private and public investment. Read more on the GovUK website.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/86-billion-for-affordable-homes-to-give-boost-onto-housing-ladder

Three Quarters Of Brits Don’t Spend Enough Money On Home Upkeep

Three quarters of Brits don’t spend enough money each year on home upkeep, new research has revealed. Experts claim that homeowners should spend the equivalent of 1% of their property value on its upkeep each year in order to maintain its worth, and with the average UK house price currently standing at £255,0002, Brits are recommended to spend around £2,550 a year refreshing their home. However, a recent study by ScS found that 75% of the nation spend less than this amount. In fact, more than half (56%) spend under £1,000 each year and one in six (17%) splash out less than £250. Read more on the Property Reporter website.

https://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/at-home/three-quarters-of-brits-dont-spend-enough-money-on-home-upkeep.html

Older Buyers Being Excluded From Housing Market

 An estate agent says the housing market now has a hidden characteristic - an absence of homes that are friendly for older people. Loveitts Estate Agents says the issue is nationwide. In a statement it says: “With many inner-city properties being untenable for elderly or disabled people, matters have only been worsened by housing policy focusing prominently on helping first-time buyers.” Last year, NHBC registered a total of 123,151 new homes in 2020, compared to 160,319 in 2019.  Of those registered in 2020, just 1,942 were bungalows - the most popular form of home for many older buyers, especially those with mobility issues. Read more on the Estate Agent Today website.

https://www.estateagenttoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2021/8/older-buyers-being-excluded-from-housing-market-warns-agency