New Housing Bill Welcomed by the Industry

As part of this week's Queen's Speech, plans were announced for a new housing bill that will introduce changes to the industry. The aim of this is to generate more housing stock and enable more people in the UK to buy their own home. As details of the bill were announced, it was largely welcomed by those within the property and construction industries.

Increasing Supply of Homes

One of the main elements of the bill will be the construction of starter homes for first-time buyers. Once these are complete, they will only be available to buyers below 40 years of age to enable a greater number of people to get on the property ladder. Often these younger buyers are put off by the need for a large deposit and rising house prices. As part of this scheme, the starter properties will be sold at a rate that is 20% less than the current market value.

There are now a growing number of consumers who want to build their own property, enabling them to construct their dream home with the right number of bedrooms or glass balconies in the right location. The Right to Build initiative that was designed to support the construction of more homes will be extended as part of the new bill. This will see local authorities supporting those who want to self-build by highlighting plots in the area that are available.

The bill will also put in place changes to the Right to Buy initiative. This will be extended to offer the same discount to local housing association tenants who want to become homeowners.

Local Authority Changes

A way of increasing the housing stock is for more brownfield sites to become available for construction. This can often be delayed by local authorities that do not release the land for development. The bill will see a requirement for a compulsory register of brownfield land across the country. This will help to push forward proposals to achieve Local Development Orders for 90% of appropriate brownfield sites before 2020.

This new housing bill will introduce changes to the neighbourhood planning system to enable it to be simplified. These changes will speed up the current process, as applications can often be stalled by red tape that fails to take into account the needs of the local population. As homeowners often look to improve their current home with the construction of extensions or glass balconies rather than move, there are an increasing number of applications being submitted. The system will now focus more on meeting local housing requirements, which should see more applications approved.

The plans for this housing bill have been met positively by those in the industry. There is a definite need for thousands more homes to be built throughout the country in order to meet the chronic shortage that we are facing. The proposals introduced within the bill should speed up the system generally and enable a greater number of properties to be constructed.