HCA hit with £542m charge as land values fall
The Homes and Communities Agency incurred a £542 million impairment charge last year as the value of its assets fell by £1.1 billion.
The drop, which has been attributed to the HCA’s predecessor English Partnerships, is revealed today in the body’s annual report and financial statements for 2008/09.
The HCA said neither the drop in the value of its land nor the charge would have any impact on its ability to achieve its aims or meet house building targets.
The report states the body met its key targets, completing 53,843 new and affordable homes for rent or sale over the accounting period, and work has begun work on 44,472 new and affordable properties for rent or sale.
Other achievements listed include reclaiming 327 hectares of brownfield land, creating 450,487 square metres of employment floorspace, and attracting £1.035 billion of private sector investment. The value of its net assets stood at £1 billion as of 31 March 2009.
The body’s net expenditure for the year rose by £1.4 billion to £4.3 billion, which the HCA attributed to its efforts to maintain programme momentum and the supply of new homes, and assist its investment partners with tailored packages of support.
The report states: ‘We have weathered tough conditions over the past 12 months, in particular the financial turmoil experienced by the market downturn – and the effect that has had on the development industry – and a period of significant and rapid change in the creation of the new agency.
‘Despite this, we launched the HCA four months early, met our key targets for the completion of new homes, maintained programme momentum, and made a significant contribution to keeping house builder and RSL development activity going.’
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