Decision details

Date of Decision:

5 March 2019

Decision Maker:

(Including Job Title)

Anne Marie Lubanski,

Strategic Director of Adult Care, Housing and Public Health

Specific Delegation:

(If any)

As per the approved recommendation in the “Site Cluster II” Cabinet Report (10 July 2017):

Authorise the Assistant Director for Housing and Neighbourhoods and the Council’s Section 151 officer to determine the appropriate tenure for 21 of the units that have been identified as shared ownership or rent to buy homes under the government’s Shared Ownership and Affordable Housing Programme (SOAHP).

Brief Description of Decision:

As described in the above recommendation, authorisation was given for officer decision to determine the appropriate tenure for the 21 units approved from the Shared Ownership and Affordable Housing Programme (SOAHP). At the point of the original Site Cluster approval in July 2017, the proposed tenure mix, which was subject to change, included 12 “rent to buy” homes. 

The July report had identified that the financial modelling completed to date showed that in the long term, the Council’s financial contribution to the shared ownership homes would be recovered, but the rent to buy product was considered more challenging.  Rent to buy is an innovative new product, introduced to try to help different groups to get onto the property ladder and the Council was aspirational in offering this as part of the Clusters programme.  However the report identified that if we were unable to mitigate against any adverse impact on the HRA and concerns remained over value for money, then the homes could alternatively be provided as additional shared ownership units or additional council rented homes.

On this basis a decision is required to agree that the 12 original ‘rent to buy’ homes will now be delivered as shared ownership – this is still an acceptable use of the SOAHP funding allocation.

Reasons for the Decision:

The decision to convert the homes from rent to buy to shared ownership was taken for two reasons: Shared ownership produces more capital income to the Council, and rent to buy has proven to be a very difficult tenure to implement for local authorities. 

Details of alternative options considered and rejected:

If delivered as rent to buy as per original approval, the HRA would be adversely impacted; the rent to buy purchaser would benefit twofold: paying a reduced rent (only 80% market rent for up to a period of five years) and entitlement to right to buy opportunity after a short tenancy.

If the 12 homes were delivered as additional council rented homes the strategic objectives of the Clusters programme to diversify the tenure and provide low cost home ownership would not be fully achieved.

Conflicts of interest declared by any Executive Member consulted by the decision maker which relates to the decision:

None

Dispensations Granted:

(If any)

None

Reports or parts of reports considered

Cabinet and Commissioners’ Decision Making Meeting – 10 July 2017: Site Cluster II

Report to Cabinet Meeting on 18^th March 2019: Site Cluster Programme Amendment