New Research Shows Shared Ownership Will Be Vital To England’s Future Housing Market

Shared ownership housing, where people part buy and part rent a home, will play an increasingly important role in England’s housing market, as house prices continue to rise, according to new research from 20 leading housing associations, supported by the National Housing Federation.

 

Continuing shortfalls in housing supply compared to our growing population will help to push house prices higher, leaving more and more people unable to buy a home in the open market. With social rented housing continuing to be severely rationed, ‘intermediate’ housing solutions like shared ownership will become vital if we are to meet our housing needs effectively.
The Government’s independent advisors on housing supply, the National Housing and Planning Advice Unit, believes England needs at least 237,500 new homes built every year to 2026. But in 2009 just 118,000 new homes were developed – only half the number required. Housing supply has only reached 200,000 homes once in the past 30 years. This helps explain why house prices have boomed since 1996 and why, even in a severe recession, house prices went up in 2009.

The new report, ‘The role of shared ownership in the future housing market’, calls on a new Government to protect public funding for new shared ownership housing when levels of government grant for new homes for the next three years are decided later in 2010.

Lindsay Todd, chief executive of Radian, said “Shared ownership is a uniquely powerful product in the housing market. It is relatively cheap for the Government to fund, it frees up social tenancies and reduces waiting lists, it increases new housing supply, and it supports many first time buyers to achieve their home ownership aspirations in an era of continuing high house prices.

“It remains hugely popular with our customers and demand always outstrips supply. New ministers and mortgage lenders must get behind shared ownership and recognise the crucial role it is going to play in our housing market over the next 20 years.”