Member Article

Government plans will not transform property market

In a desperate bid to stimulate the economy by boosting the housing industry, Cameron and Clegg’s Government has announced it will relax property development regulation and inject new cash into the industry.

The package of measures announced on Thursday (September 6) included lifting requirements for developers to create affordable housing and a £280 million extension to the FirstBuy scheme to help more first time buyers onto the ladder.

The treasury will also set aside an extra £300 million for affordable homes in an attempt to cover any shortfall from the relaxed rules for developers.

In total the Government hopes to create around 70,000 new homes and help 16,500 first time buyers onto the property ladder.

Landlords and those renting might be asking what this news will mean for them. And in short I can’t see there being any significant change to the lettings or housing market as a result of this current strategy.

Frankly support for 16,500 first time buyers is a tiny percentage of the number of people desperately wanting their own home.

A relaxation on former regulation for developers to build affordable homes means there will be few new starter homes and therefore fewer opportunities fortenants and those living with parents to find their footing on the property ladder.

I understand allowing developers to build more profit-making executive homes is good for the construction business and will create jobs, but the affordable homes programme was established for a reason. The country is desperate for affordable property and is suffering a severe lack of available social housing.

This current Government announcement will provide homes for the affluent and it will start the cogs moving slowly, but it won’t sort all of the issues in housing. More needs to be done.

It will be interesting to see what further policies are announced and when new housing minister Mark Prisk makes his voice heard – he’s had no part in the announcement so far. Admittedly he’s only just in post, but these decisions aren’t made in a day and he should have been involved, both behind the scenes and publicly, on these supposedly ‘radical’ plans.

Ajay Jagota

Managing director, KIS Lettings

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ajay Jagota .