Houses will be affordable
I think it’s important to clarify an issue raised by the M.E.N. in a story this week. (Council plan to sell houses to families on £80k-a-year, Wednesday 20 June).
This refers to an affordable housing project that has been misunderstood and I want to set the record straight.
Last year, the council successfully bid for grant funding from Homes England as part of their Affordable Homes Programme. The funding was provided based on the agreement that we would deliver 40 homes at affordable rent and 20 for shared ownership.
The 40 affordable rent properties will be managed by our social housing management company, Northwards Housing.
The 20 homes for shared ownership were acquired through a section 106 agreement with a developer and they will be marketed and sold by Equity Living, part of the Equity Housing group which is a registered housing provider.
These are high quality private sector homes that we have negotiated terms to ensure we can make them affordable to Manchester people, and the plans were approved by the council’s executive.
The shared ownership properties will be made available to households on or below the city’s average income of £27,000 per year – in line with our affordable homes policy. Not up to £80k as reported in the M.E.N. article.
And our intention is to offer these homes first to people currently living in social housing, which would bring the added benefit of freeing up social homes for other people currently on the waiting list.
This isn’t an either or debate between social housing and affordable housing. We have a clear commitment in our manifesto to deliver 500 units of social and other secure, decent housing for rent at a level that can be fully met by housing benefit.
This scheme is about opening up new ways for Manchester residents to buy their own home and it is pioneering projects like this that can help make home ownership a reality. Coun Suzanne Richards, Manchester City Council executive member for housing and regeneration