London City Council has joined forces with Places for People, a social housing developer, to construct 2000 homes in the region. There is a lot of legal action that would have to go through for a project of this size. A project like this will still require a house conveyancer to go through the hassle of the legal process. It will also require the services of businesses such as Gas Engineers Essex as well as local electricians and other building contractors.
In an initiative that is the first of its kind in the UK, the partnership will see new homes built without the need for any grant funding or government subsidies. The Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) worth £300 million will see Places for People and London City Council taking 50 per cent each of the new development, managing a variety of homes across the eight sites and splitting profits equally.
Places for People is a large company that already owns or manages over 152,000 properties across the UK, 10,000 of which are in Scotland alone. As the organisation is not-for-dividend, all profits will be reinvested into the company.
Huge Potential
The project is expected to make available to rent 1000 new affordable homes. A further 1000 properties will be available for private sale. In addition, there may also be potential for another 1000. The scheme should create many new jobs.
Innovative Thinking
David Cowans is the chief executive of Places for People, and he describes the project as transformational. He hopes the lives of important workers within the city, such as teachers and nurses, will be improved with the introduction of 1000 new affordable homes. Currently, many schemes aimed at this group are only suitable for higher-paid workers. He sees the move as an indication of what can be done within the housing development markets without cost to the taxpayer or government subsidy. He points out the need for private organisations to come together with the public sector to explore new and innovative ways of working together to develop new models and achieve more in terms of tackling the chronic housing shortage being experienced countrywide.
The project is a great addition to the council’s current building programme, which over the last four years has already successfully delivered over 1000 properties.
