Homes England has launched a new service to streamline the buying and selling of Section 106 affordable homes as recent evidence shows the delivery of tens of thousands of units has stalled.
The Section 106 Affordable Housing Clearing Service aims to facilitate and accelerate the sale of uncontracted and unsold affordable homes across England. This service does not include London, where the Greater London Authority has the responsibility for affordable housing delivery.
Housebuilders will be able to use the service to provide details of the affordable homes they have planning permission to build, alongside their private homes, but have yet to find a buyer for. The information will then be made available for Registered Providers and Local Authorities to review.
It is hoped that the service will provide greater visibility of opportunities, all in one place, for buyers and sellers to connect, build new partnerships and work together to get affordable homes sold and occupied.
The service will launch this month following engagement with housebuilders, Registered Providers and Local Authorities and will continue to be developed over the coming months.
The announcement comes just a day after the Home Builders Federation published a study which found that at least 17,432 affordable homes are being held up by a lack of Registered Providers participating in the market.
17,000 affordable homes stalled by lack of bids from housing associations
The HBF found that at least 139 home-building are currently being delayed as a result of uncontracted S106 units, threatening the supply of much-needed affordable homes across the country.
Neil Jefferson, chief executive at the Home Builders Federation, said: “The lack of Registered Providers in the market to take on the affordable housing delivered by the private sector is a major and growing problem, increasingly threatening affordable and overall housing supply.”
“Small sites are being prevented from starting, and larger sites are being halted due to the inability of developers to meet the affordable housing delivery requirements of the planning permission.”
