House builders awaiting further details for Cameron’s home-building plans

The Government is to directly commission thousands of new homes on publicly owned land, giving smaller house builders the chance to build them.

The first phase will consist of up to 13,000 homes, of which up to 40% will be discounted by 20% for first-time buyers.

Altogether, over the next five years, other brownfield sites will be prioritised for planning and development, leading to the creation of at least 30,000 new starter homes on 500 sites.

The Government described the initiative as a “radical new policy shift not used on this scale since Thatcher and Heseltine started the Docklands”.

House builders were muted in their reaction, while a rural body was utterly damning, saying that the scheme would not even help rich young bankers get on the housing ladder.

The Campaign to Protect Rural England was totally damning, saying that the Government’s plans to build 13,000 homes for sale “at just 20% off ludicrous market values is a fatuous response to the biggest housing crisis since the second world war. At best it will help those younger people on salaries far above the average, especially in London”.

Steve Povall, Managing Director of Residential Estates said “We must wait for further details to ensure we have the full picture of what the government is intending. However the use of small house building businesses is a good idea for local economies, especially on a project as large as this.”