Dozens of new affordable homes are set to be built in Richmondshire after a housing association received a Government grant of £4 million.
Northallerton-based Broadacres will build 139 new homes over the next few years at sites in North Yorkshire including Richmondshire.
The homes will be a mix of shared ownership, rent to buy and specialist homes for rent.
Paul Lightfoot, Broadacres’ property director, said: “By offering a range of tenures, we will be able to meet the housing needs of a wider range of people in different circumstances and at different stages of their lives.
“This will include young people seeking that all important first step on the property ladder, those looking to downsize and free up bigger homes for families and older people who would like to remain independent but require support from time to time.”
Shared ownership enables people to buy a share of their home and pay rent on the remaining share. Rent to buy provides people with a subsidised rent for a number of years, before they have the option of buying the property outright.
Specialist homes for rent are aimed at people who require support in maintaining their tenancy/home, e.g. sheltered housing, supported accommodation.
The funding Broadacres has received, from the Government’s Homes and Communities Agency, forms part of a £7 billion Government programme aimed at meeting the diverse housing needs of the country.
In total, over 200,000 new homes will be built as part of the programme. It came as the Government admitted in its new White Paper that the housing market is “broken” and that the solution is more housebuilding.
Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) Chairman Sir Ed Lister said: “The expanded affordable housing programme will help us continue to work with both housing associations and developers new to this area of the housing market to increase the availability of affordable homes.
“The expanded programme will also allow providers the flexibility and agility to respond to local needs and markets. This will boost housebuilding by encouraging providers to deliver a mix of homes for both affordable rent and low-cost ownership that is most suited to each place.”
