affordable housing investment - chartered institute of housing pdfs/presentations... · housing...

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Affordable housing investment Abigail Davies, CIH

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Overview

• CIH views on affordable housing programmes

• Thoughts on alternatives

• Housing standards review


Views on affordable housing programmes


Spending round features

• “Not the game changer required”

• £3bn is less than 2008-11

Is it really possible to get the same output?

• Supported housing money is helpful

• HCA land role is good – but not the holy grail

• Tentative moves to Single Growth Fund

• Benefits of simplicity


Likely outcomes

• End of sector capacity?

But organisations keep bidding – what’s the message to government?

Borrowing costs

• Sector diversification

Interface with regulation?

Who gets housed?

• Rent to buy is interesting

But impact on providers

And consumer demand


Overall policy approach

• Threats from incentive & demand side interventions?

Price and rent bubbles

Long term consequences of reduced standards?

• Longer term cost of shift to demand-side funding

• Will further weakening of affordable housing planning requirements undermine delivery?

Implications for housing for groups with particular needs


Thoughts on alternatives


Labour party policy

Detail unclear, but…

• 200k+ homes pa implies a more active state

• Use it or lose it - a sanction from a more interventionist state…

Detail critical

• LA Right to grow…

What about localism? …and democracy?


New sources of supply

Need new capacity & providers in the market

• Free up local authority capacity

• TIFFs

• Tax credits for philanthropists


Housing standards review


Housing standards review

Simplify and remove construction standards

• Building Regulations as only form of standard

• Removal of local discretion

• Leave materials standards to the market

• Wind down Code for Sustainable Homes

• Accessibility standards for a local proportion

• Harmonise standards for different tenures

• Harmonise space standards


CIH response

• Maintain a long-term perspective

Cost & output now aren’t everything

History littered with unsustainable housing

• Demographic & environmental change

• A progressive vision for energy efficiency?

• Same standards for affordable and market

• Space standards labelling

Are benefits over stated & what are the unintended consequences?


Abigail Davies

Assistant Director of Policy & Practice

@AbiDaviesCIH

[email protected]

024 76851756 or 07748 657987

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

affordable housing investment - chartered institute of housing pdfs/presentations... · housing...

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