The report finds that Help to Buy is overwhelmingly used by better-off households who would have been able to afford a similar home without the Government subsidy. Looking at what impact the Government’s housing policies have had on social mobility, the Commission’s conclusion is that Help to Buy, Right to Buy and Shared Ownership have “shown limited effectiveness in opening up home ownership to lower income households”.
Commenting on the report, the leading affordable rent to buy provider, Rentplus, has said that the Commission’s findings support what it has been saying for some time. The average household income of tenants moving into its affordable rent to buy properties is some £20,000 lower than those using Help to Buy. Most of its tenants and applicants are key and essential workers, and nearly 30% come from social housing which is then freed up for those most in need.
According to Steve Collins, Rentplus’ Chief Executive, the key factor in making its homes more affordable is that its tenants are able to overcome the barrier of not having any savings for a deposit.
Under the affordable rent to buy model tenants move into a brand new home which they will eventually own outright. No initial deposit is required and they pay an affordable rent for up to 20 years, leaving them with more money to save for a deposit each month. When they are ready to buy, these savings are supplemented by a gifted deposit worth 10% of the value of the property at the point of sale.
As Steve Collins says: “Our tenants are 100% renters and then 100% owners. Unlike other government-backed schemes, they require no upfront deposit when they move in.
“This report from the Social Mobility Commission should encourage Ministers and local authorities to do more to promote affordable rent to buy as a significant way of levelling up the housing market and make home ownership a real possibility for people on lower incomes.
“Rentplus is calling on local authorities to include affordable rent to buy as part of their affordable housing provision so this can be achieved.”
Notes:
The family’s brand new home is a 3 storey 3 double-bedroomed house which they have acquired without needing to pay a penny’s deposit.
The couple will pay an affordable rent for 5 years, before being given the option to buy the home they are living in, saving on future moving costs. And when they do buy, Rentplus will gift them 10% of the house value towards their deposit.
This is all possible because Rentplus, the country’s award winning affordable rent to buy provider, has been working in partnership with Tamar Housing, South Somerset District Council, and Persimmon Homes to provide ten new affordable rent to buy homes at Parrett Gardens, Langport. The first five homes were completed at the end of 2019 and the Cox family are some of the last families to take possession.
Rhea says the family is very excited to be moving into their new home. The house they moved from was privately rented from a pub landlord who needed it back to house the bar manager. “I’d heard about Rentplus some years ago, but once we’d been given an indication that our landlord wanted possession, I contacted Tamar Housing. The chance to have a brand new home, with a garden, without needing to raise a huge deposit was very appealing.
“The whole process has gone smoothly. We were lucky that our old tenancy overlapped, and so we could arrange for carpets to be laid before, and we could stagger our moving in,” Rhea added.
The family have documented their journey on Instagram!
South Somerset District Council was keen that applicants had a local connection with the area, and for Rhea it is very sentimental link. “My family live in Langport, and from my house I can see the house my great grandmother lived in.
“Tamar were very helpful to us and once we bid on the house, we were quickly allocated it.
“There’s no way we could afford to privately rent a house like this – Somerset is really expensive and we’d be looking at £1,200 a month at least. Instead, Rentplus has given us a lovely new home, and we will be saving money each month. And the bonus is that when we’re ready to buy, Rentplus will give us 10% of the sale price towards our deposit. In the meantime, we know how much rent we need to pay, and we have no maintenance costs for the house, as they’re included in the rent.”
Steve Collins, CEO at Rentplus welcomed the family to their new home. “I’m so pleased Rhea and her family are able to move in.
“Despite Coronovirus, Rentplus and our partners, Persimmon, Tamar Housing, and South Somerset District Council have continued to work hard.
“I’d like to thank everyone who has made this happen for the Cox family and we all hope they will be very happy in their new home.”
Jo Calvert, Specialist – Strategic Housing, Service Delivery to South Somerset District Council, said: “This is yet another success story for the people of South Somerset. I am delighted that Rentplus in collaboration with Persimmon has been able to bring forward a scheme that helps to achieve a balanced range of opportunities for local families. Previously reliant on the rented market, this scheme will deliver real opportunities to take a stake in affordable home ownership for those families able to take that next step up the ladder.”
Robert Hart, director in charge of Persimmon Homes South West added: “The commitment from our colleagues throughout this most challenging period, both to the business and to the wider communities in which we work, has been exceptional and I would like to thank them all for their unstinting support, and the team here is pleased Rentplus is able to welcome new tenants as a result.”
Julie Barnett, CEO of partner Tamar Housing added: “It is very rewarding for Tamar, as a not-for-profit housing association, to be a Rentplus partner and support local families to move into good quality affordable rented, new homes knowing they will have an opportunity in the future to buy their property with the help of a gifted deposit.
“Tamar and Rentplus have helped nearly 250 households in the South West to achieve this opportunity to rent, live and eventually buy their own homes.”
Rentplus won the 2019 National Housing Award for the Most Innovative Home Ownership Product and has been shortlisted for six other building and planning awards this year.
The new partnership will offer an affordable pathway to homeownership for working families on low or middle incomes in the area. It benefits those unable to save the large deposits required to access other types of housing.
The average house price in Hampshire was £340,940 over the last year. The majority of sales in Hampshire were detached properties, selling for an average price of £519,308. Terraced properties sold for an average of £266,562, with semi-detached properties fetching £320,549. This would mean the average 10% deposit would be >£32,000, excluding surveys, conveyancing and other fees.
Research has shown that two thirds of private renters have no savings at all, rendering the possibility of putting down even the 5% required for some shared ownership properties. Purchasing remans beyond the reach for most first time buyers, largely key workers, living in private rented properties across the county.
Rentplus’ affordable rent-to-buy model offers ;an accessible route to homeownership for ordinary working people unable to save for a deposit or access other forms of affordable home ownership.
Residents move into a brand new home without paying a penny in deposit and pay an affordable intermediate rent. Leases run for a minimum of 5 years (up to 20 years), giving residents time to clear debts, and save towards their deposit. At year 5, they have their first opportunity to purchase, at which point, Rentplus gifts them 10% of the purchase price towards their deposit.
Rentplus is funded by institutional investors, providing affordable rent-to-buy homes with no grant or public subsidy. Properties are managed by local housing associations, like Winchester Housing Trust, with 20-year operating leases. Our partners benefit from having an extended tenure offer, and increased rental income from the homes.
Winchester Housing Trust and Rentplus are already in discussions with a number of local authorities and developers across the region to identify suitable homes to offer local people.
Steve Collins, Rentplus CEO, said: “Our new partnership will form the foundation of our ambitious plans for Hampshire and across the South. These much needed new homes will make a vital contribution to helping the area’s working families onto an affordable pathway to homeownership without the need for a deposit.
“Affordability of housing is an issue across the country. Rent-to-buy is an innovative model that gives local people the opportunity to fulfil their dreams of homeownership, while offering them the safety and security of a long-term tenure. We look forward to working with Winchester Housing Trust to make more of these dreams a reality in the region.”
Winchester Housing Trust Chief Executive, Andrew Simpson, said: “We are delighted to be working with Rentplus to deliver Hampshire’s first affordable rent-to-buy homes. We are committed to exploring innovative tenure models to complement our existing housing provision which offer a range of affordable housing options to meet local people’s housing needs and aspirations”.
“We welcome our new partnership with Rentplus to manage their affordable rent-to-buy homes which we believe fits exactly with this ambition. We’re very pleased that we will be the first housing association in Hampshire to offer this innovative housing option. We look forward to working with Rentplus to deliver many affordable rent-to-buy homes across the county which in turn will enable Winchester Housing Trust to further our purpose to provide new affordable housing in rural communities within Hampshire.”
Whilst First Homes will lower the deposit required to access homeownership, for the majority of families on ordinary incomes who are struggling to save anything at all, the scheme will not help them to ‘level up’.
To truly ‘level up’ we need to broaden the reach of home ownership to those who do not fall into this category. The inability to save for a deposit needs to be addressed, not just lowering the deposit itself.
Coronavirus is likely to exacerbate this problem, with many of those who did have savings being forced to dip into them.
You can view it here on the YP website.
Rentplus resident Nicole has featured in another Guardian article to support award winning Rentplus. You can read the Guardian article here.
The £7million housing project at Mannamead, Plymouth, has been completed – and Rentplus, the award winning ambitious firm behind it, is already funding an additional 850 homes across the South of England.
Residents started moving in to the groundbreaking development in time for Christmas.
The Rentplus affordable rent-to-buy model features in this week’s Plymouth Herald and Business papers.
You can read more here.
Judges said: “This year’s judging proved its toughest yet, competition was high with UKHA receiving the largest number of entries in its Inside Housing history”.
The Rentplus team will now have to present to judges in March, with winners being announced in M
ay.
There was a great turnout for our session with Tetlow King asking how the country delivers full tenure of NPPF defined social housing. Changes to the NPPF and the government’s drive for Rent To Buy to be fully integrated into the social housing mix raises the importance of this tenure.