Suitable housing for disabled people must be prioritised
The Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (LUHC) Committee published its inquiry report on disabled people in the housing sector where Propertymark gave evidence, which examined barriers to accessible housing, increasing the supply of accessible homes, and the support available for adapting homes, including reforms to the Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG). The overarching conclusion chimes with our long-held position that the ultimate key to tackling the housing crisis is to build more homes of all kinds.
Distaste for rent controls in Wales
The Summary of Responses to the Green Paper Call for Evidence on Securing a Path towards Adequate Housing Including Fair Rents and Affordability has been published, which showed an aversion to rent controls being implemented as a long-term measure, a view shared by Propertymark.
Next London Mayor must leverage powers to tackle housing backlog
On Thursday 2 May 2024, Londoners will cast their votes for the next Mayor and 25 Assembly Members. With a population of over nine million, and the highest house sales and rental values in the country, London presents unique challenges. Propertymark has written to the candidates outlining our housing plan for London, highlighting key priorities for the next four years and our proposals for addressing the city’s crisis in housing availability.
London Mayor ordered to take further action on housing plan
Rt Hon Michael Gove, MP, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, has demanded a partial review of the London Plan focusing on industrial land and opportunity areas in the capital, and wants the average rate of delivery to increase from 37,200 to more than 62,300 homes a year to tackle housing delivery backlogs.
Fundamental interventions needed to correct housebuilding
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has published a report on housebuilding and found the dominance of speculative private development paired with complex, unpredictable planning rules is the major cause of the long-term shortfall of new homes in the UK.
20,000 new homes to be built to help housing crisis
The Affordable Homes Guarantee Scheme 2020 has had a boost of £3 billion to provide low-cost, flexible, and long-term loans to help fund investment in new and existing affordable homes across England, including those for social rent, affordable rent, and shared ownership.
More new supported and specialist homes are needed
The National Housing Federation (NHF) predicts that by 2045 around 2.3 million older people could be living in homes that don’t meet their needs unless the housing sector is given the tools and policy landscape they need to provide a solution.
Housing benefits must be reset to protect low-income households
Propertymark has co-signed a letter to the Chancellor of the Exchequer ahead of the Autumn Budget strongly urging action on static rates of local housing allowance (LHA) and the lack of affordable private rented homes.
Controls will not result in adequate housing and fair rents for Wales
Without introducing measures that tackle tenant demand and landlord costs, property standards will reduce, landlords will leave the sector and rents will rise. This has been evidenced when rent controls have been implemented across Europe and the United States and is currently the case in Scotland.
Labour are the party of home ownership says deputy leader
Shadow Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Secretary, and Deputy Leader, Angela Rayner MP put housing at the centre of her speech to the Labour Party conference on Sunday 8 October 2023, committing to deliver the biggest boost in affordable and social housing for a generation.
Not a fairer deal for everyone in the housing sector
Scotland's First Minister, Humza Yousaf, MSP, renewed the commitment to introducing long-term rent controls and new tenant rights under the Scottish Housing Bill, set to be enacted in 2024, plus, under the current cost-of-living measure, emergency rent caps and a moratorium on evictions will remain in place until 31 March 2024.
Level the playing field on accessible homes for disabled people
Ensuring access to appropriate homes is a key part of the Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Committee (LUHCC) inquiry that is open until 21 September 2023, which is also seeking evidence on the progress following a consultation on raising accessibility standards for new homes was published in 2022.
Securing the right path to adequate and affordable housing in Wales
The Welsh Government has launched a Green Paper Consultation seeking views and evidence to help them understand the rental market, in particular, what factors influence landlord behaviour in setting rents and taking on tenants and what tenants consider is an affordable and adequate property.
100% mortgage product to help renters with no deposit
Skipton Building Society has launched a five-year fixed deal at a 5.49% rate with a maximum term of 35 years for tenants who can borrow up to 4.49 times their income up to a maximum of £600,000 to enable them to get onto the property ladder without a deposit.
Solutions to tackling the supply crisis in the Welsh PRS
Propertymark has given evidence to the influential Senedd Local Government and Housing Committee’s inquiry looking at the supply, quality and affordability, current challenges, opportunities for partnership working with the social sector, the effectiveness of regulation, barriers to accessing the sector and the availability of data on the PRS.
Propertymark’s voice heard in Renters’ Reform
The Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Committee has reviewed the White Paper outlining the UK Government risks undermining its own proposed tenancy reforms with MPs in the Committee debate agreeing on areas and concerns Propertymark has highlighted.