Locals helped onto housing ladder with innovative new scheme – the first in Ryedale
Local MP, Kevin Hollinrake, paid a visit to meet aspirant homeowners have who have just moved in to the first ever Rentplus affordable rent to buy homes in North Yorkshire. He met with local councillors, officers and Rentplus team, and met one of the new tenants in the development, Jess.
Ryedale District Council worked with Rentplus-UK to offer seven 2- and 3-bedroomed houses on the Wainds Field Development in Kirkbymoorside. All have private gardens and two allocated parking spaces.
Banks and building societies are demanding ever higher deposits to secure mortgages, which remains unaffordable for many. According to Zoopla, the average price for a property in Kirkbymoorside stood at £281,029 in 2021 and terraced houses £199,100. First time buyers would need to save over £25,000 to secure a mortgage and pay the fees most building societies demand, leaving many local residents, particularly key and essential workers on lower incomes, unable to buy their own home.
The award-winning Rentplus scheme allows prospective buyers to move into a brand new home without the need for a deposit. They pay affordable rent, set by the local authority, for their home for five to 20 years. For these properties, the rents are between £520 and £600 a month and tenants use the rental period to save towards a future mortgage deposit and build a good credit rating.
Rentplus buys the homes from developers and let them on long leases usually to local housing associations. The rent includes all repairs to the property.
At the end of the agreed term, the tenants have the opportunity to purchase 100% of their home, at which point, Rentplus gifts them 10% of the purchase price towards their deposit.
Steve Collins, Rentplus CEO, said: “Rentplus turns renters into homeowners. Affordability is a growing issue across the country and Rentplus is really making a difference. This is our first scheme in the North East and we’re excited to be working with Ryedale District Council and Cicero to help the area’s working families onto an affordable pathway to homeownership without the need for any upfront deposit.”
Cllr Mike Potter, Chair of Planning for Ryedale District Council added: “Last year we opened two housing developments to provide more affordable homes. I’m delighted that Wainds Field is the first of 2023 which we are delighted to officially open today. It provides affordable homes for our local community – the new tenants have local connections to the area, all working locally, most are in key or essential worker roles. It’s a lovely and welcoming site which is testament to the partnership working Ryedale District Council has undertaken with local developer, Cicero and with Rentplus for the benefit of our citizens.
“Our Council Plan sets out clear targets to provide affordable housing as we recognise that house prices and rents are high in Ryedale and that this is an issue we need to tackle. Ryedale is leading the way in delivering affordable homes for local people and Ryedale staff and Rentplus UK should be proud of delivering this.”
Kevin Hollinrake MP talked about the importance of helping people to have opportunities to own their own home. ““Owning your first home is a dream for every family. I was delighted to join Rentplus at their site in Ryedale to see what they are doing to make that dream a reality for local people and to meet some of the families living there. It was good to hear about how Rentplus offer not just affordable rent but the chance to buy so that people can benefit from being homeowners.
I would also like to wish Jess and her family good luck and congratulate them on moving into their new home through Rentplus.”
You can find out more by watching the Rentplus film Turning Renters into Homeowners.
Photo shows Kevin Hollinrake MP, Steve Collins (Rentplus CEO) and Cllr Phil Potter with new Rentplus tenant, Jess, and local councillors at the first Ryedale Rentplus home.
Our New Year’s Resolution is to get more councils across England to adopt Rentplus. We help working people on low to mid incomes onto the housing ladder without any upfront deposit.
Rentplus believes affordable rent to buy should be an option for everyone living in not just every county in the country, but in every local authority area.
If you want to see Rentplus offered where you live, ask your local councillors for an affordable rent to buy home. If they don’t know about Rentplus, ask them to get in touch!
Rentplus is offering affordable rent to buy homes in Battle.
There is a selection of two 2 bed and one 1 bed flats left. Move in with no deposit, rent for 5, 10, 15 or 20 years and when you’re ready to buy, we’ll gift you 10% gifted sum.
To register your interest, please email [email protected]. More information here.
Brand new affordable #RenttoBuy homes in #Derbyshire.
The scheme has a selection of one 3 bed and six 2 bed houses with rents between £564 to £660pcm.
Successful applicants move in with £0 deposit and can buy 100% of their home at years 5, 10, 15 or 20 and will receive a 10% gifted sum from Rentplus.
To register your interest, please email [email protected]. Get some more information here.
Rentplus has a selection of affordable #RenttoBuy homes in the Cambridge area.
There are five 2 bed homes and two 1 bed maisonettes, rents are between £720 to £800pcm.
Tenants move in with £0 deposit and can buy 100% of their home at years 5, 10, 15 or 20 and will receive a 10% gifted sum from Rentplus.
Applicants must have a local connection to the South Cambridgeshire area. Register your interest at [email protected], and find out more here.
A Devon-based innovative approach to increasing local home ownership has seen six local families being helped onto the housing ladder.
A new partnership between Plymouth-based Rentplus-UK and local housing association, South Devon Rural, working with West Devon Council and local builders, Harrington Homes, meant six new affordable rent to buy homes were available close to the centre of Lifton. Under the model, private finance funds new affordable housing at no cost to the local council. The housing association also benefits from a new rental income stream, in return for taking over local management of the tenancies.
With just four weeks until Christmas, Sir Geoffrey Cox MP joined with Cllr Caroline Mott, Mayor of West Devon and Lead Member for Built Environment and Christine Candlish, CEO at South Devon Rural Housing to welcome the new residents into the homes they will be buying.
The homes consist of two 2-bed houses and four 1-bed flats. All homes have been allocated and tenants are starting their home ownership journey by moving into their brand-new homes without paying any upfront deposit. They will pay an affordable rent (80% of market rent) for an agreed period, living in the home that they will one day own whilst they save up to buy it. Each family has previously lived in or have connections to the area.
By paying a below market rent they can save more each month. At the outset, they choose whether to buy their home after 5, 10, 15 or 20 years. They move in with no deposit and when they come to purchase, Rentplus will gift them 10% of their home’s value to add to their savings and reduce the mortgage they need. They will buy their home using a high-street mortgage and then own 100% of it as if they had bought on the open market.
At the event, Robin Falle, Regional Director for the West of England at Rentplus, said: “Affordability is an issue across the country. We’re excited be working with South Devon Rural and West Devon Council to offer local home for local people, enabling hard working people to stay living in the communities they grew up in. It is good to be here today to meet the tenants, hand over their keys and to wish them all the best in their new home.”
Christine Candlish, Chief Executive at South Devon Rural, commended all parties for the partnership and said: “One of the things that excites us about working with Rentplus is the way it fills a gap in the market, particularly in small rural villages where people want to stay living in their communities, but cannot afford to. With Rentplus they can stay living locally, pay an affordable rent, build their deposit, and buy. They never have to move again if they choose not to.
“We’re excited about future opportunities, and we all wish our tenants picking up their keys today every luck and happiness in their new homes”.
Cllr Caroline Mott, Mayor of West Devon added: “This is the council’s sixth scheme with Rentplus. We need more schemes to get affordable housing into our local communities. Giving local people the chance to buy a home in these villages is crucial to the future of our rural communities. We are working with partner agencies as we want to see more schemes like this come to fruition.”
Sir Geoffrey Cox MP said: “Partnership such as this have an important part to play in enabling more people to own their homes. Providing people with somewhere to call their own is the single most important cause of the time. Talking to the people moving in today I can see how much it means to them to have a place of their own that they will someday own. Giving people the chance to own their home is true Levelling Up. Schemes such as Rentplus assist in this and I hope there are more to come.”
Declan and Georgina Howarth are amongst the first residents to move in to their new Lifton homes. Not needing a deposit to move in is a real bonus, they told us. “We’re really excited to be moving in. We’ll be paying an affordable rent, cheaper than local rents, which means we can save our deposit and get on the housing ladder earlier than we expected thanks to the Rentplus scheme.” The young family are excited to be in for Christmas. “Firstly, we’ll get the carpets put in next week, then the Christmas tree goes up!”
Sir Geoffrey, Cllr Mott and Christine Candlish also planted a sweet cherry tree, part of the Rentplus commitment to plant trees for the late Queen’s Jubilee Canopy.
Brand new affordable rent to buy homes are ready for aspirant homeowners in Longframlington.
There are a selection of four 2 bed apartments and five 3 bed homes, with rents between £500 to £680pcm.
Tenants move in with £0 deposit and can buy 100% of their home at years 5, 10, 15 or 20 and will receive a 10% gifted sum from Rentplus.
Rentplus turns renters into homeowners. More information here.
Dr Nik Johnson, Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Jonathan Djanogly, MP for Huntingdon and Cllr Sam Wakeford, Executive Councillor for Jobs, Economy and Housing at Huntingdonshire District Council, visited Alconbury Weald on 4 November 2022 to celebrate the completion of 22 affordable new homes for first time buyers in Huntingdonshire, made available thanks to Rentplus-UK’s innovative affordable rent to buy scheme. The homes are part of the celebrated Urban and Civic site which received funding from the Cambridge and Peterborough Combined Authority, and they include 8 x 1 bed flats, 11 x 2 bed flats and 3 coach houses. All homes have been allocated and tenants have moved in.
With the average house price for first-time buyers in Huntingdonshire coming in at over £261,000, many working families on lower incomes are locked out of home ownership. The majority can’t save a deposit, even though they could afford the monthly mortgage repayments. Under Rentplus-UK’s model, 22 families, the majority of whom are key/essential workers and nearly half drawn from the emergency services or armed forces, have been able to move into a brand new home without the need for an upfront deposit. Each family has previously lived in or have connections to the area.
Under the model, private finance funds new affordable housing. Those moving in pay no upfront deposit; they rent their home paying an affordable rent for between 5 and 20 years whilst they save and build a strong credit rating. When ready to buy, Rentplus-UK gifts them 10% to put towards their savings for the deposit.
Speaking at the event, Jonathan Djanogly MP confirmed that it remains one of the Government’s top priorities to enable more people to own their homes, and schemes such as Rentplus have an important part to play in this. Commenting, Jonathan said: “Both the affordability and natural beauty of Alconbury and its surroundings makes the area an attractive prospect for those looking to get onto the property ladder. It is, however, crucial that homes built within our local housing market remain affordable and accessible for local people. Schemes such as Rentplus assist in this and so I warmly welcome their participation in our community.”
Dr Nik Johnson, Mayor of the Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority added: “Now, more than ever, affordable housing is crucial to our communities. People deserve to be able to get onto the housing ladder, and this collaborative effort from Rentplus, Huntingdonshire District Council and the Combined Authority shows what can be done when we’re all working compassionately together to deliver a much-needed project. It’s wonderful to see so many families – including many key workers – starting their home ownership journey, and I hope to see more projects like this from Rentplus in the future.”
Cllr Sam Wakeford, Executive Councillor for Jobs, Economy and Housing at Huntingdonshire District Council commended all parties for the partnership approach and said: “As a council, we will explore future opportunities to give local people the chance to own their own home. Affordable homes are a vital part of creating healthy spaces and communities around Huntingdonshire and we are looking forward to the possibility of helping local people onto the housing ladder in their area.”
John Walton, Regional Director for the East of England at Rentplus, said: “Affordability is an issue across the country. Rentplus is an affordable rent to buy option which removes the deposit barrier – the biggest barrier to homeownership across the country. This scheme will make dreams a reality for people in Huntingdonshire. Rentplus changes lives.”
The first residents to move into the Rentplus Alconbury Weald scheme were 22-year-old Sophie and David who have always known that they wanted to own their home. “Rentplus has given us that opportunity earlier than we expected. We thought we would have to wait years until we’d saved a deposit. We are paying affordable rent, cheaper than local rent here, and that is allowing us to save. In five years we will be on the housing ladder thanks to this Rentplus scheme. The apartment is everything we wished for.”
Photo shows partners who joined the official cutting including (l-r) John Walton, Jonathan Djanogly, Dr Nik Johnson and Cllr Sam Wakeford, with Rentplus Area Director Julie Abbey-Taylor in the front row.
More information here Alconbury Weald Leaflet 29112021.
