Inside Housing
Finance

LSVT raids bond market for £225m

24/05/2012

A stock transfer housing association has refinanced its entire debt pile after raiding the capital markets for £225 million.

Direct payment could double rent arrears

23/05/2012

Housing associations are anticipating rent arrears could double as a result of moves to pay housing welfare payments direct to tenants.

Think tank calls for local cash to fund regeneration

23/05/2012

Local authorities should be able to lead local regeneration with community budgets, according to a new report.

Welsh Government to help first-time buyers

22/05/2012

The Welsh Government will provide guarantees for mortgages for first-time buyers, the Welsh finance minister will announce later today.

Builder wins first stand-alone repairs deal

22/05/2012

A house builder has won its first stand-alone social housing responsive repairs contract as it seeks to diversify its business.

Mitie's turnover increases 6%

21/05/2012

Mitie has announced turnover of more than £2 billion and increased operating profit.

No panacea

18/05/2012

This week, your intrepid business correspondent braved a hazardous sea crossing and explored hitherto unchartered parts of the globe to visit the self-build pioneers of Holland.

Fit for the future

18/05/2012

Housing providers are pushing boundaries to address the challenges facing the sector, but they must tread carefully

HCA to trial self-build with five pilots and £30m fund

18/05/2012

The Homes and Communities Agency is set to release a series of pilot land parcels for self-build projects as part of a government push on the low-cost development model.

Landlords to float on stock exchange

18/05/2012

A consortium of 10 housing associations is to list a company made up of 10,000 social homes on the junior London stock exchange in September.

Private sector rents rose by 0.5% in April

18/05/2012

Private rents in England and Wales went up by 0.5 per cent during April, while arrears topped £300 million, according to figures from lettings agency LSL Property Services.

Simplified green regulations proposed to cut build costs

18/05/2012

Social housing developers in Northern Ireland could be allowed to abandon ‘complicated’ green building regulations in favour of a simpler system under plans to save money on building homes.

Four hundred people sign up to Newbuy

17/05/2012

The government’s flagship mortgage indemnity scheme for buyers of new-build homes has passed a milestone.

Kier on track following contract wins

17/05/2012

Kier has reported it is on track to meet its 2012 expectations after securing more than £400 million of construction work over the past five months.

Housing stalwart gets policy review brief

16/05/2012

Housing stalwart and former Inside Housing columnist Jon Cruddas is to co-ordinate Labour’s policy review.

Councils get more time to spend right to buy cash

15/05/2012

The government has relaxed rules on how councils must reinvest money from the reinvigorated right to buy following criticism.

Self build groups in line for £30m of funding

14/05/2012

Grant Shapps has announced a £30 million pot to promote self-build will go to groups building homes at the same time.

Mears' social housing business going strong

14/05/2012

Mears has today announced strong social housing revenues after starting eight new contracts since the start of the year.

Landlords warned of increased borrowing risks

14/05/2012

Housing association boards need to understand the risks they are taking as raising finance becomes more challenging for the sector, a senior regulatory figure has warned.

Wakefield builds own homes

11/05/2012

Wakefield and District Housing has become the latest landlord to embark on a self-build project using its own workforce.

G15 hits back at IDS attack on dog track plans

11/05/2012

The chair of the G15 umbrella group has hit back at Iain Duncan Smith’s attack on a housing association for failing to include social rented homes in a proposed new development.

Outsourcing model to fund new build

11/05/2012

A new repairs outsourcing model has been developed that could increase the borrowing power of councils and finance new house building projects.

Backing for MPs call to lift council debt cap

10/05/2012

Councils and housing bodies have backed the call from a group of MPs for the government to reconsider the local authority borrowing cap.

Landlord secures rating to seek institutional funds

10/05/2012

A housing association believes it can attract direct investment from pension funds and life insurance companies after securing a credit rating.

Barratt ups building goal after strong start to 2012

10/05/2012

Barratt Developments has increased its forecast for the number of homes it will build this year following a strong start to 2012.

Scottish landlord to test direct payments

09/05/2012

A Scottish landlord will take part in a pilot project to test the direct payment of housing benefit to tenants, it has been announced.

Finance report fuels right to buy concerns

09/05/2012

A report from a cross-party group of MPs has raised doubts over the viability of the coalition’s reinvigorated right to buy programme.

Housing market slows as economic fears grow

08/05/2012

Surveyors have revised their housing market expectations to predict further price falls after a brief spell of optimism last month.

Council seals £150m PFI deal to build new homes

08/05/2012

A London council will build more than 300 new homes after finalising a private finance initiative housing project.

Long term care bill to rise by £16bn

04/05/2012

The annual cost of long term care in the UK is expected to rise by £16 billion by 2025, according to a report.

One week left to complete our development survey

04/05/2012

There is only one week left to fill in Inside Housing’s development survey, being run with H+H, and stand a chance of winning £500 of Marks & Spencer vouchers.

Government defends new heat incentive

04/05/2012

The government insists the delayed roll-out of its scheme to incentivise the use of renewable heat will not suffer from the setbacks to its controversial feed-in tariff scheme for solar power.

In at the deep end

04/05/2012

What lessons must be learned from the past, as landlords take the plunge on ECO funding? Nick Duxbury and Madeleine Cuff report.

Alliance Homes sets up free solar scheme

03/05/2012

A housing association is helping cash-poor social landlords defy cuts to government subsidies by installing solar panels with no upfront cost.

Contractor reports 'solid start' to 2012

03/05/2012

Morgan Sindall has reported a ‘solid start’ to the year, ahead of its annual general meeting today.

New homes for Edinburgh

01/05/2012

Edinburgh Council is seeking a developer for a £80 million contract to build around 800 new homes.

House prices rise for second consecutive month

30/04/2012

House prices across England rose for the second month in a row in April, according to housing market information company Hometrack.

HCA panel rejects all calls for consumer regulation

27/04/2012

The new social housing regulator has already rejected 20 complaints about consumer regulation following its creation on 1 April.

A vote for housing

27/04/2012

Housing finally ignited as a major political issue in the run-up to the London mayoral elections this week. Carl Brown investigates how some of the main contenders plan to tackle the issue

Great Places gets positive credit ratings

27/04/2012

Great Places has been given strong credit ratings by both Moody’s and Fitch ahead of a potential bond issue later this year.

LGA criticises ‘unrealistic’ and ‘restrictive’ right to buy plans

27/04/2012

The government’s proposals on how councils can keep and use receipts from future right to buy sales in the local area have been labelled ‘unnecessarily restrictive’ by the Local Government Association.

Shapps challenged to prove rent claim

27/04/2012

The leader of Islington Council has challenged housing minister Grant Shapps over his latest claim this week that private rents are falling.

Report: ‘Build rules must be simplified’

26/04/2012

Procurement processes in the housing sector are ‘onerous and costly’, thanks to overzealous interpretations of European Union procurement rules, according to a report.

Plans for first Welsh bond scuppered

26/04/2012

Plans for a Welsh social housing bond have suffered a setback after two participating landlords joined a rival bond issue.

Chink of light

26/04/2012

A small dip in the GDP and suddenly there is an opportunity to put housing back on the agenda.

Economic argument

26/04/2012

In the last of our series of articles from the leading London mayoral candidates, Boris Johnson sets out his plans for housing

Taylor Wimpey positive despite mortgage fears

26/04/2012

House builder Taylor Wimpey has reported a strong start to the year, despite concerns about mortgage availability.

Landlord given strong credit rating ahead of bond

25/04/2012

A northern housing association is planning a new bond issue later this this year after having its credit assessed by two leading ratings agencies.

Johnson targets pension fund investment in homes

23/04/2012

Boris Johnson has pledged to ‘bang the heads together’ of pension funds to try to get them to invest in housing.

Less is less

20/04/2012

Today’s Inside Housing brought with it the perhaps less-than-surprising news that social landlords think they will be able to build fewer subsidised homes if there is less subsidy.

Contractor refutes sell-off rumours

20/04/2012

The chief executive of Morrison has launched a robust defence of the repairs and maintenance contractor, quashing reports that a string of worries over poor performance and a £12.7 million loss in the first half of the financial year had seen the company put up for sale.

It’s time to pull together

20/04/2012

Politicians may be focused on the upcoming elections, but the housing sector should take a longer view.

Surge in interest from buyers on back of Newbuy

19/04/2012

One of the country’s biggest house builders has said it has seen renewed interest from potential home buyers following the launch of the government’s mortgage indemnity scheme.

Mayoral candidate plans to offer half price homes

18/04/2012

One of the candidates in the race to become London mayor has promised to create a secondary housing market in the capital with homes for sale or rent at half market rate.

Builder to report profit boost as sales rise

17/04/2012

House builder Telford Homes has reported increased sales and completions.

Landlords pick contractor for £12m improvements

16/04/2012

A contractor has won a bid to improve more than 1,000 homes in a deal worth £12 million.

GLA seeks developers for £5bn procurement panel

16/04/2012

Developers are being sought for a £5 billion procurement panel which aims to provide a boost to house building in London.

Ken's conundrum

13/04/2012

The ranks of those people trying to bring institutional investors into the social housing fold were swelled this week by an unlikely source.

Intricate network

13/04/2012

Social housing providers spend billions of pounds outsourcing services, so how can they be sure their chosen sub-contractors won’t run into trouble? Simon Brandon takes a crash course in supply chain risk management to find out

Take a longer view

13/04/2012

For-profit registered providers can benefit tenants and investors alike

CBI backs move for London mutual fund

11/04/2012

The CBI has backed a move from London’s councils to pool their pension funds in an effort to increase investment in the capital’s infrastructure.

First-time buyers rush to beat stamp duty holiday

11/04/2012

Demand in the housing market increased in March as first-time buyers took advantage of the final weeks of a stamp duty holiday.

House sales reach three-year high

10/04/2012

House sales in the UK have reached a three-year high, giving an indication that the housing market is picking up.

Broadening its horizons

05/04/2012

Amicus Horizon is in rude health again following an austerity programme. Gavriel Hollander charts its progress.

RCT Homes seeks £1bn investment

05/04/2012

A landlord is launching an ambitious pan-Wales development company to build up to 10,000 affordable homes using £1 billion of institutional investment.

We need a big guarantee

04/04/2012

The Big Society Capital could work, but only with guarantees from the government, says Phil Shanks.

Construction firm sees turnover pass £1bn

04/04/2012

A house builder has seen its turnover surge beyond the £1 billion mark after a strong performance in 2011, according to its latest set of results.

PM to unveil £600m community enterprise fund

04/04/2012

The prime minister is launching a £600 million community investment fund today, financed by leading banks and through money left in dormant bank accounts.

Cameron launches reinvigorated right to buy

03/04/2012

The prime minister has formally unveiled the new right to buy scheme for social housing tenants in England which will include an increased discount cap of £75,000.

Fund to tackle homelessness opens for bids

02/04/2012

The second round of a fund to help homelessness projects has opened for bidding today.

A force for good

02/04/2012

Council housing self financing has begun, but what will the new era bring? Steve Partridge examines the possibilities

Landlord signs £347m deal for 2,400 homes

02/04/2012

A deal to build 2,400 homes in Gateshead for a project worth £347 million has been signed by a consortium.

Positive thinking

30/03/2012

Well, that was a quiet week on the housing front wasn’t it?

Councils use new-found freedom to borrow £13bn

30/03/2012

English councils took advantage of historically low interest rates to borrow almost £13 billion of public cash as the self-financing revolution went live this week.

Landlords apply to build schools

30/03/2012

Housing associations in Wales could begin building schools in a bid by the Welsh Government to overcome national borrowing restrictions and raise cash for housing.

Out for a discount

30/03/2012

The raised right to buy discount cap will be a challenge in areas with lower property values

The borrowing bombshell

30/03/2012

The era of self-financing has arrived but council celebrations could be cut short by an ominous threat to their borrowing limits. Should they take cover? Carl Brown investigates

Contractor cancels £3.8m deal with TMO

29/03/2012

A contractor has terminated a deal to provide repairs and maintenance to a tenant management organisation.

Council gives housing stock a £75 million boost

28/03/2012

A council has pledged to invest £75 million in improving its housing stock over the next 10 years.

Borrowing rates set for councils to buy freedom

28/03/2012

The rates of interest councils must pay on the loans they use to buy their way out of the housing revenue account subsidy system have been set.

New standards mark shift to economic regulation

27/03/2012

Social landlords will have to comply with a value-for-money standard as part of a new regulatory framework published yesterday.

Council in bid to let new homes at social rent level

26/03/2012

A council has secured extra grants from the Homes and Communities Agency to ensure that new homes in a proposed regeneration scheme can be let at social rent levels.

Contractors merge to create £1bn company

26/03/2012

Contractors have merged to create a regeneration and repairs company with a turnover of £1 billion.

Council awarded cash to help struggling homeowners

23/03/2012

A council has secured thousands of pounds of government funding to help struggling homeowners at risk of repossession.

Landlords: cuts will affect service standards

23/03/2012

More than a fifth of social landlords think they will be forced to lower service standards as a result of government spending cuts.

Surpluses double at largest housing associations

22/03/2012

The largest English housing associations’ combined surplus almost doubled last year.

£3.5bn warning over HRA reforms

22/03/2012

The long-awaited self-financing settlement for councils has been plunged into uncertainty after a watchdog warned the reforms will create £3.5 billion of unexpected public sector debt – prompting a vow from the Treasury to take action.

Budget fuels CIH fears for HRA reform

21/03/2012

The Chartered Institute of Housing has raised concerns over reform of the housing revenue account as detailed in the Budget.

Building fund needs £150m to reach goal

21/03/2012

The government’s aim to create up to 16,000 homes through its Get Britain building fund would have fallen short by 4,000 homes, the Budget has revealed.

Landlord raises £100 million on bond market

21/03/2012

Hastoe Group has raised £100 million on the bond market.

Manchester to set up 7,000 home fund

21/03/2012

Greater Manchester will set up an investment fund for up to 7,000 homes under government plans to hand more powers to England’s biggest cities.

Mortgage lending up for 7th straight month

21/03/2012

Year-on-year mortgage lending increased for the seventh month in a row, according to new figures.

Bodies call for help ahead of NPPF and Budget

20/03/2012

Campaigners have called on the government to deliver new planning guidelines which help deliver truly sustainable developments.

HCA allocates £570m to stalled housing schemes

20/03/2012

The Homes and Communities Agency has announced the remainder of the schemes that have been shortlisted for the first phase of the Get Britain building fund.

Welfare reform fears prompt small rent increase

19/03/2012

A landlord is limiting its rent increase to tenants in preparation for the impact that welfare changes will have.

Rubber stamp

19/03/2012

So George Osborne will come down ‘like a ton of bricks’ on people who avoid stamp duty by buying homes through offshore companies. What took so long?

Fear of repossession hitting families

16/03/2012

A homelessness charity has revealed that the fear of repossession is gripping households as more than one family a day has been coming to it asking for help.

All about the money

16/03/2012

The Budget must support an economic environment where councils can use their new financial freedom to build homes

Associations set to join newbuy scheme

16/03/2012

The government’s flagship initiative to kick-start the housing market by offering 95 per cent mortgages could be extended to housing associations as well as house builders.

Credit where credit's due

16/03/2012

With more housing associations approaching the capital markets for funding, credit ratings agencies hold the key to the sector’s financial future. Gavriel Hollander asks Standard & Poor’s to unlock its secrets

Experts blast homes ‘giveaway’

16/03/2012

Councils could receive as little as £5,000 per home sold under right to buy reforms, thanks to huge discounts announced this week.

Landlords look to Osborne to boost investment

16/03/2012

Housing associations and councils have called on chancellor George Osborne to help them access more private sector investment as part of next week’s Budget.

The finance frontier

16/03/2012

On 28 March local authorities will boldly go where they have never been before as a new era of self-financing dawns. Keith Cooper finds out if they are ready for their journey into the unknown.

Contractor awarded £11m of work

15/03/2012

A housing contractor has managed to secure a series of new deals worth more than £11 million since the beginning of the year.

Think tank: landlords can help economy with loans

14/03/2012

The director of an influential think tank has called on housing associations to offer loans to their tenants in order to stimulate the economy.

Contractor and landlord agree to cancel repair deal

14/03/2012

A contract between a repairs firm and housing provider has been cancelled following reported complaints from residents.

Council in £2.5 million housing pledge

14/03/2012

A council is pledging to build at least 210 new homes after agreeing to invest £2.5 million into a development programme.

Landlord seeks contractors for £300m framework

13/03/2012

A landlord is on the lookout for contractors to take part in a £300 million framework to build up to 3,200 new homes.

House builders call for VAT cut

13/03/2012

House builders have urged chancellor George Osborne to slash VAT ahead of next week’s Budget in order to feed consumer confidence.

Shaky start

12/03/2012

If NewBuy really is to be about building new homes rather than just subsidising housebuilders here are 10 questions that need answers.

Councils seek funding freedoms to build homes

12/03/2012

Council leaders are calling on the chancellor to ease restrictions on local authority borrowing to enable them to build more homes.

Green Deal Finance Company loan imminent

09/03/2012

The Green Deal Finance Company expects the government’s £3 billion Green Investment Bank to approve a loan within the next two months.

35 social housing providers yet to sign contracts

09/03/2012

Nearly a year after the introduction of the Homes and Communities Agency’s affordable homes programme, a number of social housing providers are still to sign contracts.

HRA reform prompts wave of stock transfers

09/03/2012

Housing revenue account reform is prompting councils to sell off homes in a new wave of stock transfers.

Prime location

08/03/2012

So Edinburgh has won ownership of the Green Investment Bank.

MPs demand tighter rules for payday loan firms

07/03/2012

MPs have called for tougher regulation of companies that issue short term ‘payday’ loans.

Housing association joins rush to bond market

07/03/2012

A housing association has become the latest to tap into the capital markets with a £100 million bond issue.

Incentive payments should help first-time buyers

06/03/2012

Councils should consider using new homes bonus funding to set up schemes to help first-time buyers get on the housing ladder, according to an influential think tank.

There's no misunderstanding

02/03/2012

Werner Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle is one of the most famously misunderstood scientific theories.

CIH calls for rethink on right to buy

02/03/2012

The Chartered Institute of Housing has called for a rethink of the government’s right to buy proposals ahead of an expected announcement on discount levels later this month.

Unlocking ambitions

02/03/2012

A year after becoming a housing association, First Choice Homes Oldham is counting its blessings, as Nick Duxbury discovers

IDS in pledge to support social enterprises

01/03/2012

Iain Duncan Smith has pledged to do more to encourage investors to put money into social enterprises in order to ‘reconnect the top and bottom of society.’

Dutch landlord financial crisis is a warning for UK

29/02/2012

A financial crisis faced by a large Dutch housing association is a warning for the United Kingdom’s social housing sector, according to experts.

Council awards contractor £56 million deal

28/02/2012

A contractor has won a £56 million deal to provide repairs and maintenance to 4,500 homes.

House builder in profit surge

27/02/2012

A house builder has reported a significant rise in turnover and profit for 2011.

Landlord issues £250 million bond

27/02/2012

Circle has become the latest housing provider to enter the bond market by issuing a £250 million bond.

OFT launches investigation into payday loans

24/02/2012

The Office of Fair Trading has launched a review of payday loans amid fears that some companies were targeting people who cannot afford to repay them.

House builder posts revenue increase

24/02/2012

House builder Redrow will not pay a dividend to its shareholders despite an improved financial performance in the second half of 2011.

Playing a political game

24/02/2012

As councils gain more power over housing the subject is becoming a key issue for local elections, says Stuart Macdonald

Kier revenues hit by local authority cut backs

23/02/2012

Kier has seen a 22 per cent drop in revenue for its maintenance business, which provides services to local authorities and housing associations.

Landlord seeking new contractors

22/02/2012

A 34,000-home landlord is looking to appoint a series of new contractors for responsive, planned and cyclical repairs.

Private rented sector review head seeks evidence

22/02/2012

The head of a government review of barriers to large-scale investment in the private rented sector has issued a call for evidence.

Lovell profits boosted by Connaught contracts

21/02/2012

Lovell has reported a significant increase in profits, which it says has been driven by the transfer of contracts formerly held by stricken rival Connaught.

Accentuate the positive

17/02/2012

Time for some positivity I think.

Rent rise council in £30m housing pledge

17/02/2012

A council is raising rent by 7 per cent but increasing investment in its housing stock by almost £9 million.

Ratings cut looms as Moody’s downgrades outlook

17/02/2012

Moody’s has downgraded the outlook for creditworthiness of housing associations with credit ratings.

Building a better future

17/02/2012

The government is making housing the cornerstone of economic recovery, says Grant Shapps

Pinnacle and Mansell in £60m deal

17/02/2012

Woking Council will outsource its housing management to a joint venture between Pinnacle and Mansell Construction.

Council support

14/02/2012

Good news for thousands of people in Birmingham this week, as the council decided not to cut its Supporting People budget by as much as initially proposed.

Council awards £60 million repairs contract

14/02/2012

A contractor has been awarded a £60 million deal to provide repairs to thousands of homes.

Council announces rise in rent and housing budget

14/02/2012

Portsmouth Council will put up its rents by less than half the government’s recommended increase - but will raise some service charges instead.

Latest stage of £250m regeneration agreed

13/02/2012

The latest phase of a £250 million regeneration scheme which will provide 206 new homes has been given the go-ahead.

À la John Lewis

10/02/2012

Housing associations can learn from the retailer’s ability to communicate effectively

Repossessions at lowest level since 2007

09/02/2012

Home repossessions are at their lowest level since 2007, according to data published today.

Contractor wins 8,000 home repairs deal

08/02/2012

A contractor has won a bid to provide responsive repairs to 8,000 homes in a £10 million deal.

Sales and completions boost for house builder

07/02/2012

Bellway has reported an increase in sales and a higher proportion of private completions.

The rate debate

03/02/2012

There is always a chance it passed you by, but this Wednesday was D-day for local authority housing finance bods.

Building landlords get Edinburgh loan boost

03/02/2012

Edinburgh Council plans to kickstart mothballed housing developments across the city by borrowing money at cheap rates and loaning it to housing associations.

Councils demand risk-free borrowing

03/02/2012

Councils are holding detailed talks with the Treasury in a bid to prevent them falling foul of movements in the money markets when they raid government coffers for loans next month.

Newcastle vows to fight rent increases

03/02/2012

Newcastle Council is expected to launch a campaign to persuade the government to limit huge rent rises for tenants across the country.

Right to buy likely to fail says report

02/02/2012

The government’s attempt to re-ignite right to buy sales by increasing the discounts available to tenants will fail to deliver the promise of one for one replacements, according to a property analyst.

Shapps: housing is central to economic recovery

01/02/2012

The housing minister has told councils and housing associations that building new homes will be central to improving the country’s economy.

Contractor targets growth thanks to order book

31/01/2012

A major contractor has reported that its revenues and earnings are progressing as expected following a good start to the year.

No more begging bowl

27/01/2012

Writing about housing finance whilst in the grips of recession can sometimes feel like a thankless task.

Strong interest reported for landlord's £88m JV

27/01/2012

A landlord has reported strong interest from potential partners to create an £88 million joint venture company.

Forward thinking

27/01/2012

This year’s UK Housing Review by the Chartered Institute of Housing takes a look at how coalition government policies are affecting housing trends. Here, Hal Pawson, Steve Wilcox and John Perry give the lowdown on the report

Property fund to help homeless

27/01/2012

A homelessness charity has joined forces with a fund manager to launch a property fund to invest in homes.

Do not pass go

26/01/2012

What I write here is my personal view as an Occupier. There are many views, all treated with respect. This is an inherent principle of the movement.

A fast buck

20/01/2012

The secret that the financial gurus don’t tell you is that there is a whole lot of luck involved in what they do.

Eurozone crisis drives up loan price

20/01/2012

The price of bank loans to the social housing sector has shot up on the back of the deepening eurozone economic crisis.

Morrison in £12.7m loss

20/01/2012

Housing repairs and maintenance contractor Morrison suffered significant losses in the first six months of the 2011/12 financial year, after seeing a sharp downturn in its high-value work.

THFC issues £131m bond

20/01/2012

The Housing Finance Corporation has issued a £131 million bond on behalf of ten housing association borrowers, breaking the 5 per cent yield barrier.

Group secures 100% of affordable rent bid

18/01/2012

A housing association has been awarded £10.7 million from the Homes and Communities Agency under the affordable homes programme.

Merger set to go-ahead in February

16/01/2012

A merger between two contractors is expected to take place in February after it was given the green light by the Office of Fair Trading.

Winners and losers

13/01/2012

During the early months of what feels like the never-ending recession, one of the oft-repeated idiosyncrasies was that it didn’t feel like a recession.

Crossing the line

13/01/2012

The government should be putting its money into homes, not high-speed vanity projects, argues Stuart Macdonald

Audit office to investigate affordable rent scheme

12/01/2012

Scrutiny will be cast over the financial viability of housing providers taking part in the Homes and Communities Agency’s affordable homes programme after the National Audit Office launched a probe into the £1.8 billion scheme.

Public body fears hold back subletting plans

12/01/2012

The government is holding back from giving housing associations the same powers to tackle subletting as local authorities due to fears over their status.

Barratt profits rise 40 per cent as margins improve

12/01/2012

House builder Barratt has reported a 40 per cent increase in profits for the six months to 31 December 2011 compared with the equivalent period of 2010.

Housing market hurt by eurozone instability

10/01/2012

Housing sales remained stable during December and an increasing amount of new stock came onto the housing market, according to the latest RICS UK housing market survey.

House builder expects 50% rise in profits

09/01/2012

Leading house builder Persimmon has said it is expecting its annual results next month to reveal an increase in pre-tax profit of 50 per cent.

Association buys up 150 flats for private rent

06/01/2012

Glasgow Housing Association has acquired 150 flats in a £14 million deal to shore up its social housing business.

Councils fear RTB won’t deliver homes

06/01/2012

Fears are growing among local authorities that government plans to increase right to buy discounts will fail to deliver replacement homes.

NHF: ‘government inflated cost of benefit defeat’

06/01/2012

The government’s claim that its ‘bedroom tax’ defeat will cost taxpayers around £300 million in lost savings has been disputed by the National Housing Federation.

Rule change

06/01/2012

Landlords must prepare for big changes in the way they are regulated, says Ruth McNaught

The year ahead

06/01/2012

Stuart Macdonald takes a look at what 2012 could bring for the housing sector

House in order

04/01/2012

As nice as the festive break was, there is one strong reason to be happy to be back at work.

Charity investor funds housing provider

03/01/2012

A specialist charity investor has injected £400,000 into an organisation that provides housing access for vulnerable people.

Twitter ye not

23/12/2011

It didn’t escape the attention of the housing world’s twitterati that Grant Shapps was unusually reticent over one particular policy initiative yesterday.

Landlord sets up for-profit subsidiary

22/12/2011

An Edinburgh housing association has set up a for-profit subsidiary to provide homes for intermediate rent.

What's missing?

20/12/2011

So has the FSA done enough to guard against a future mortgage crisis without being so heavy-handed that it makes it impossible for many people to get one now?

FSA reveals proposals for regulation of mortgages

19/12/2011

Watchdog the Financial Services Authority has today published its proposals to regulate the mortgage market.

Sale of homes in mixed tenure sites 'subdued'

16/12/2011

Constraints on mortgage availability are hitting the sale of homes in mixed tenure sites, a contractor has announced.

Birmingham wins £92m HRA debt cut

16/12/2011

When the Communities and Local Government department issued its latest indicative settlements as part of the review of the housing revenue account system, Birmingham was one of the clear winners.

Review of the year

16/12/2011

What a year. From the economic doom and gloom to the summer’s riots, social landlords have had their work cut out over the past 12 months. Here, Inside Housing looks back at the highs and lows

Councils urged to be new force in house building

15/12/2011

Councils have been challenged to take advantage of their increased independence through self-financing reform by investing in the building of new homes.

The lessons of RBS

14/12/2011

The housing sector should learn from the report into the collapse of Royal Bank of Scotland, says Colin Wiles

Seize the moment

13/12/2011

The reform of the housing revenue account could be a missed opportunity if councils aren’t given more freedom, argues Alex Thomson

Demand for homes grew in November

13/12/2011

Buyer demand for property in the UK rose during November, but economic uncertainty continues to hold the market back from any meaningful recovery, according to the latest UK housing market survey.

Mortgage boost for first-time buyers

12/12/2011

Mortgage payments for first-time buyers are at their most affordable for nearly eight years due to low interest rates, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

£400m building fund mainly a loan

09/12/2011

The government’s £400 million fund to unlock a wave of English house building projects is unlikely to include a significant amount of grant money, it has emerged.

The green deal dilemma

09/12/2011

The exclusion of social landlords from key fuel poverty funds leaves a weak business case for the green deal, as Nick Duxbury discovers

TSA can’t fill key financial posts

09/12/2011

The Tenant Services Authority has been operating without ‘critical’ regulatory staff and is experiencing delays in making regulatory judgements as its transition to the Homes and Communities Agency looms.

Builder claims mortgage indemnity scheme first

08/12/2011

The house building arm of Galliford Try has claimed the first offering of finance backed by the government’s mortgage indemnity scheme.

Shapps defends end of stamp duty holiday

06/12/2011

Housing minister Grant Shapps has defended the government’s decision to end the stamp duty holiday.

Delayed reactions

02/12/2011

Market traders appear to have been the only people surprised by the chancellor’s autumn statement, says Gav Hollander

Special needs investment vehicle secures £20m

02/12/2011

A former social worker has secured £20 million of bank funding to set up a new company to provide special needs housing.

Private house builders agree affordable rent deals

30/11/2011

Two private sector developers were among the 10 providers to sign contracts with the Homes and Communities Agency last week as part of its affordable homes programme.

Nationwide figures buck house price trend

29/11/2011

House prices increased slightly this month, according to figures published today by Nationwide.

Hometrack finds house prices continue to fall

28/11/2011

The steady decline of house prices shows no sign of abating, according to the latest survey of the market.

Paying your way

25/11/2011

Another week, another major government announcement looms into view.

Councils to take on £30bn as HRA debt skyrockets

25/11/2011

Councils have seen the debt burden they are set to shoulder as part of self-financing reforms to the housing revenue account balloon to £29.6 billion.

Something borrowed

25/11/2011

The coalition’s underwriting of mortgages echoes similar measures in Scotland, says David Bookbinder

Young people to be frozen out of homeownership

23/11/2011

A ‘transformation’ of the housing market has meant that young people are set to remain frozen out of homeownership, according to a senior adviser at the Bank of England.

Procurement alliance for 1,000 landlords launched

23/11/2011

Three social housing buying consortia have joined forces to launch a strategic procurement alliance for more than 1,000 landlords.

TSA sets out fresh approach to regulation

22/11/2011

The social housing regulator has launched a consultation on plans to change the way it regulates landlords.

Review to examine bars to institutional investment

21/11/2011

The government will launch an independent review into investment in the private rented sector as it seeks to spark institutional investment.

Government launches mortgage guarantee scheme

21/11/2011

The government has pledged to support first-time buyers by offering security on low-deposit mortgages.

Housing strategy to be backed by £400m fund

21/11/2011

David Cameron and Nick Clegg will today unveil a £400 million fund to kickstart development schemes which have stalled due to lack of finance.

Show us the money

18/11/2011

The word on the block is that the housing strategy’s grand unveiling next week is likely to provide as many questions as answers.

£3.5bn shared owner plan

18/11/2011

A property investment company plans to unlock up to £3.5 billion of capital per year from the social rented sector by converting 40,000 social homes into shared ownership.

HCA signs £100m funding contracts

18/11/2011

Two of the country’s largest housing associations have signed contracts worth nearly £100 million as part of the Homes and Communities Agency’s affordable homes programme.

Maintenance spend drops by £4 billion

18/11/2011

Repairs and maintenance spend by social housing providers fell by £4 billion last year, according to research

Shining stars

18/11/2011

We reveal details of the winners of the 2011 UK Housing Awards

Working it out

18/11/2011

Landlords must sweat their assets if they are to get best value from their housing stock but, as Gavriel Hollander learns from a round table of industry experts, there’s more than one way for providers to get financially fit for the future

Demolition won't cut debt

16/11/2011

Housing minister Grant Shapps responds to our report that councils are demolishing homes to reduce housing revenue account debts

CBI backs government PFI probe

15/11/2011

The CBI has backed the government’s decision to review the use of the private finance initiative in a move that many see as the beginning of the end for the controversial funding scheme.

A hollow victory for the housing sector?

14/11/2011

For years our sector has been extolling the economic, as well as the social benefits of house building.

Banks for the memories

11/11/2011

In a week when environmentalists revealed that the Black Rhino and Bluefin Tuna may both be not much longer for this mortal coil, another noble beast also faced up to the prospect of extinction.

House builder in sales boost

11/11/2011

Galliford Try saw its sales jump by 38 per cent in the last four months, while cancellation rates stayed low.

Building the future

11/11/2011

There may be dark times ahead but the sector is determined to come out on top. Simon Brandon asks some top housing bosses what they think the coming years hold

End of the line for long-term lending

11/11/2011

Long-term lending to the social housing sector has been consigned to history because the last major banks to provide loans of up to 25 years will no longer do so without regular repricing opportunities.

Contractor reveals Connaught recovery work ongoing

09/11/2011

Morgan Sindall has said progress on recovering work from stricken contractor Connaught is proceeding in line with expectations.

Self-financing could help councils build homes

08/11/2011

The new system of self-financing for councils could enable authorities to build more homes and improve services for tenants, according to a report by umbrella group London Councils.

Housing market ‘robust’ despite economic fears

07/11/2011

Conditions in the UK housing market remain stable despite wider economic uncertainty, according one of the country’s leading builders.

Look East

04/11/2011

George Papandreou might not like to be reminded of it, but money knows no borders.

Council rent policies will lower value of homes

04/11/2011

Councils’ rent policies in London will reduce the value of affordable housing and hamper the ability of housing associations to build homes, according to research from consultancy Drivers Jonas Deloitte.

Redundancies costing landlords millions

04/11/2011

Housing associations have doled out millions of pounds in redundancy and severance packages as the effects of the recession on their workforces continued to take their toll.

EC Harris merger agreed

02/11/2011

A deal has been approved for a Dutch engineering firm to buy consultancy EC Harris.

Latest affordable homes contracts revealed

28/10/2011

Orbit Group has signed the second most valuable contract so far awarded under the Homes and Communities Agency’s affordable homes programme.

Councils to demolish homes to cut HRA debt

28/10/2011

Councils will demolish thousands of homes to slash the amount of debt they take on under the imminent reform of the housing subsidy system.

Knock down prices

28/10/2011

Thousands of residents across England have had a surprise over the past few months.

Council seeks transfer to dodge £145m bill

27/10/2011

A council is seeking to transfer its stock to a housing association to avoid taking on £145 million of debt through reform of the housing revenue account.

Willmott Dixon wins major repair contract

25/10/2011

Wilmott Dixon has won a £147 million repairs and maintenance contract with Home Group.

Affordable homes projects reach £560m

24/10/2011

The latest round of affordable homes contracts have been revealed by the Homes and Communities Agency.

Have courage

21/10/2011

Will the challenges of getting to grips with self financing allow local authorities to make the most of their new freedoms?

Economists call for more investment in housing

21/10/2011

Leading economists have called on the government to invest in housing as a way to prevent a ‘double-dip’ recession.

REITs offer a new investment option

21/10/2011

A government move to relax property investment rules could see housing associations pool their stock to create a new private rental market.

Worries on the rise

21/10/2011

I wrote last week of grim economic news and, unfortunately, this week has seen more of the same.

Mortgage lending up but warning issued

20/10/2011

Mortgage lending rose in the third quarter of 2011, but industry analysts warned that the latest inflation and unemployment figures will weaken household confidence in the coming months.

Scottish house prices falling

19/10/2011

Year on year house prices in Scotland continued to fall, according to market specialists.

New ownership scheme gets green light

19/10/2011

A housing association is looking for investors for a new home purchase plan after the scheme was given the green light by finance heads.

House builder reports leap in profits

18/10/2011

Bellway has today reported a 52 per cent increase in pre-tax profit and higher turnover.

REIT changes could appeal to landlords

17/10/2011

The Treasury has proposed changes to the rules governing real estate investment trusts that could make the structures more attractive to housing associations.

Contractors' pay linked to tenant satisfaction

14/10/2011

A pair of contractors could be hit with financial penalties if tenants are not satisfied under a new agreement with a housing organisation.

Contractor wins place on £500m framework

14/10/2011

A contractor has won a place on a framework worth up to £500 million with a major housing provider.

EU bank crisis hits landlords’ lending

14/10/2011

The ability of housing associations to raise fund in the future has come under threat from the European banking crisis.

Council credit rating 'constrained' by HRA reform

12/10/2011

Credit ratings agency Standard & Poor’s has said that it has ‘constrained’ the rating of Birmingham City Council because of additional debt it will take on as a result of the housing revenue account reform.

Landlord nets saving with insurance deal

11/10/2011

Affinity Sutton has targeted an annual saving of £250,000 after agreeing a so-called captive insurance deal with a sector-specialist broker.

Big four ask Treasury for £43bn write-off

07/10/2011

Four of the country’s largest housing associations have called on the government to release £43 billion of historic grant to allow them to fund new homes.

Council finance reform under threat

07/10/2011

Councils could be saddled with millions of pounds of extra debt as a result of government attempts to revive the right to buy, sector experts have warned.

Unsecured bonds the future for PfP

07/10/2011

Places for People has pledged to replace almost the entirety of its £1 billion bond portfolio with unsecured debt as its existing bonds reach maturity.

Landlord aims for £30m surplus

05/10/2011

A2Dominion Group has targeted generating a £30 million surplus by 2014 as it aims to develop a sizeable commercial arm to support its social housing provision.

Companies give green deal finance a boost

04/10/2011

Banks, energy companies and retailers have come together to form a not for profit company that will reduce the cost of finance in the government’s flagship retrofit scheme, the green deal.

Council planning to invest pensions in private rented homes

30/09/2011

Ealing Council is looking to use its pension fund to invest in homes in the private rented sector.

Associations’ spare cash soars towards £1bn mark

30/09/2011

Housing associations have seen their average surpluses increase by 33 per cent in 2010/11 as the total across the sector heads toward the £1 billion mark.

Circle 33 under watchdog’s eye

30/09/2011

The social housing regulator is monitoring a subsidiary of one of England’s largest housing associations after a major overspend on repairs and maintenance.

Genesis land values plummet by £20.7m

30/09/2011

The value of land owned by Genesis Housing Group has plummeted by more than £20 million - almost a third of the total losses predicted for all housing associations.

Trade on your assets

30/09/2011

Landlords should take a commercial approach to their property portfolio to maximise investment in housing

Increased council borrowing could deliver homes

27/09/2011

A group of housing experts has called on the government to increase local authority borrowing powers to deliver more affordable homes.

Catalyst’s surplus rises

23/09/2011

Catalyst Housing Group has reported increased surplus and turnover.

Redundancies cost Gentoo £2 million

23/09/2011

Gentoo Group spent nearly £2 million on redundancy payouts last year as the economic slowdown and grant funding cuts hit its construction arm.

Mortgage lending reaches two-year high

22/09/2011

Gross mortgage lending rose 10 per cent year on year in August, reaching its highest level for two years, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

Social housing sales reach new low

21/09/2011

Sales of social housing in England remained at low levels during 2010/11 despite a 15 per cent rise in local authority homes sold through the right to buy.

Future of affordable rent remains undecided

19/09/2011

The government has no definite plans for its affordable rent programme after 2015, the communities minister has said.

Housing association issues £150m bond

16/09/2011

Moat has become the latest housing association to enter the capital markets after issuing a £150 million bond.

Council body moots borrowing cap swap

16/09/2011

Local authorities should be able to break borrowing limits by swapping debt caps under the new housing revenue account system, a report by London Councils will argue.

Don’t bank it

16/09/2011

The feed-in tariff has been perhaps the most successful ‘green’ government initiative ever.

Orbit: ‘Home sales must jump by 72%’

16/09/2011

Orbit Group is set to be one of the first large housing associations to sign its development contract with the Homes and Communities Agency for its share of funding under the £1.8 billion affordable homes programme.

Round two

16/09/2011

Housing minister Grant Shapps has proposed a second round of the affordable homes programme. So are landlords financially fit enough to get back into the ring or are they on the ropes already? Carl Brown investigates

Profit and revenue up at Apollo

15/09/2011

Apollo has increased its operating profit by 66 per cent from £7.5 million last year to £12.4 million.

Galliford Try posts increased profits

14/09/2011

Galliford Try has reported an 80 per cent increase in profits from its housebuilding division.

TSA chair fears lenders' withdrawal from sector

13/09/2011

The chair of the Tenant Services Authority has warned the impending financial crisis in Europe could prompt lenders to withdraw from the social housing market.

Aviva completes £45m homes transfer

13/09/2011

Fund manager Aviva has completed a deal for £45 million of institutional investment in social rented homes.

Getting to grips with self financing

12/09/2011

Understanding the new financial landscape for housing will be vital if building ambitions are to be realised, argues Lesley Lodge

Price rises boost Redrow profits

09/09/2011

House builder Redrow has seen its profits soar on the back of a hike in sale prices.

Alliance lobbies for landlord pay option

09/09/2011

Private and social landlords have formed an alliance with tenants to challenge the government’s housing benefit reforms.

Call for end to VAT on shared services

09/09/2011

Housing associations are calling on the taxman to scrap VAT on all shared services in a move that could save millions of pounds.

FIT for future investment?

09/09/2011

Is it worth installing photovoltaic panels after 1 April 2012 when the feed-in tariff is due to change?

Landlords to fight NBS debt re-price

09/09/2011

Up to 40 housing associations are fighting an attempt by Newcastle Building Society to re-price long-term debt after the lender took the rare step of invoking clauses in its loan agreements that could cost the sector tens of millions.

Proceed with caution

09/09/2011

One year on from the collapse of Connaught, the obvious conclusion is that lessons have not been learned.

MPs launch housing finance probe

06/09/2011

A parliamentary committee is set to address the growing housing crisis with the launch of an inquiry into the financing of new stock.

Building boom could give £75bn lift to economy

05/09/2011

Trebling the number of annual house building starts would generate an extra £75 billion for the economy and reduce rents by 10 per cent, a study has found.

Orbit business brings in £100k

02/09/2011

Orbit Group has sold £100,000 worth of back office functions to rival housing providers since launching a stand-alone external services business earlier this year.

Development failings halt landlord cash bid

01/09/2011

A housing association decided not to bid for grant under the £1.8 billion affordable homes programme after identifying failings in its development function.

Annual report reveals £500,000 loss for Fed

31/08/2011

The National Housing Federation has reported a loss after tax of £526,000.

New deal

30/08/2011

After a year of writing about cuts in housing benefit, investment and supporting people, rising rents and homelessness and falling housebuilding, it makes a pleasant change to report some good news.

Banks blamed for Strathclyde demise

26/08/2011

Scottish construction groups have criticised banks for exerting too much pressure on house builders after the collapse of Strathclyde Homes.

Landlord makes 11th-hour bid for energy funds

26/08/2011

A housing association has launched a last-ditch attempt to help social landlords prise £350 million of eco-cash from the grasp of energy companies.

Swap shop danger

26/08/2011

Seasonal cheer was in short supply for a number of housing associations in the run-up to Christmas 2008. Shockwaves from the collapse of Lehman Brothers that September had finally reached the UK social housing sector, resulting in a series of sudden calls from lenders for more security against a type of loan known as a ‘stand alone swap’.

House builder reports surge in profits

23/08/2011

Persimmon has reported a surge in pretax profit due to better margins on newly opened sites and control of development costs.

Charity income on the rise despite cuts

19/08/2011

A housing charity has increased its incoming resources in the last year despite cuts in funding from local authorities.

Freedom at last

19/08/2011

Scrapping the housing revenue account will cut through red tape and help councils serve their tenants in the best possible way, says Grant Shapps

Housebuilder goes into administration

18/08/2011

A Scottish housebuilder has gone into administration, citing sustained cash-flow problems caused by the downturn in the housing market as the reason for its demise.

Contractor secures 85 per cent of revenue

15/08/2011

A contractor has revealed that it has secured 85 per cent of budgeted revenues for the financial year.

Getting it down Pat

12/08/2011

She has one of the biggest jobs in housing, at one of the toughest times. Can Homes and Communities Agency boss Pat Ritchie deliver, wonders Caroline Thorpe.

Insurers call on home secretary to help curb rate rise

12/08/2011

Insurance companies have urged the government to extend police compensation schemes to help curb premium price rises following the estimated £100 million damage to England’s cities caused by rioters.

Moat in £100m bid to buy more homes

12/08/2011

Moat Housing Group plans to spend up to £100 million buying thousands of homes from other landlords.

Land investment scheme could fund homes

09/08/2011

Public bodies should invest land as equity to fund new rented homes, a think tank has argued.

Builder puts shared equity loans up for sale

08/08/2011

One of the UK’s leading house builders has confirmed it is looking at selling a chunk of its shared equity loans.

Public sector told to make better use of assets

05/08/2011

The government has called on councils to make better use of the assets they hold, as it published details of buildings and land owned by public sector bodies.

Contractor buys struggling home care business

04/08/2011

Social housing firm Mears has increased its involvement in the care and support sector with a £7.4 million acquisition.

Taxman bows to pressure to halt VAT change

04/08/2011

The government has backed down on a VAT plan that would have cost housing associations £108 million over the next four years.

House builder posts first half loss

03/08/2011

House builder Taylor Wimpey has posted a small loss for the first half of 2011, figures show.

Prime numbers

02/08/2011

The rise and rise (and rise) of the central London property market continues apace, seemingly disconnected from the rest of the economy and the rest of the country.

Mears lands £20m PV deal with British Gas

02/08/2011

Mears has won a £20 million photovoltaic panel installation contact through its partnership with British Gas.

Housing association plans to sell 5,000 homes

01/08/2011

One of the UK’s largest housing associations will sell nearly 5,000 homes as part of a restructure.

Eurozone woe hits landlord's finances

29/07/2011

Notting Hill Housing Trust has raised £120 million on the bond market - but has had to pay more as a result of the eurozone crisis.

Welsh landlords plan £75m bond

29/07/2011

A group of Welsh housing associations is turning to the bond market for funding following government grant cuts.

House prices fall across England and Wales

28/07/2011

House prices have fallen across most of the country in the last year, latest figures from the Land Registry reveal.

Millions lost in PFI funding following review

28/07/2011

A scheme which promises to deliver thousands of new homes across the country has had its funding reduced following a series of reviews.

Housing association reports growth in turnover

26/07/2011

Hyde Group has reported an increase in turnover of £12.1 million in its annual report for 2010/11.

£1.6 billion of repairs contracts up for grabs

26/07/2011

A housing group has issued a tender for repairs and maintenance work worth up to £1.6 billion.

House prices continue to slip

25/07/2011

House prices fell slightly across England and Wales this month, according to data from housing market information company Hometrack.

Cashing in

22/07/2011

The Homes and Communities Agency is reluctant to divulge details of who got what in last week’s grant giveaway. But that hasn’t stopped Carl Brown finding out

Hyde sells bulk of care arm to Family Mosaic

22/07/2011

Cuts to Supporting People funding have prompted Hyde Group to sell its entire care and support subsidiary.

Survey warns of 10 year drop in development

22/07/2011

Housing associations plan to reduce the number of homes they build for the best part of the next decade.

A dose of market forces?

18/07/2011

‘Supermarket to shake up sector’, read the headline in Inside Housing, following the announcement at Harrogate that an un-named supermarket chain intended to enter the social housing sector.

Builder completes sale of North American arm

14/07/2011

Taylor Wimpey has completed the sale of its North American business, leaving it clear to focus on the UK.

Housing demand stays flat while prices fall

12/07/2011

Demand for property remained flat last month and house prices continued to fall, according to the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors.

Remaining Kinetics firms face administration

11/07/2011

The remaining part of social housing contractor Kinetics is set to go into administration, according to one of its housing association clients.

Contractor posts losses of £135 million

08/07/2011

A contractor has posted pre-tax losses of £135 million for last year but has claimed localism and the Green Deal are opportunities to improve.

Carbon payments could raise £1.1 bn

08/07/2011

Local authorities could set up multi-million pound funds to pay for carbon reduction measures using contributions from developing associations and house builders, under proposals unveiled this week.

Spectrum holds out for 2014 restructure

08/07/2011

‘Based on 2006 logic it was a perfectly reasonable assumption that we could further collapse the group in the long term…that we would be able to re-finance the new group on more advantageous terms and make further efficiency savings,’ says Wayne Morris, chief executive of Spectrum Housing Group.

Benefit reforms to push up interest payments

07/07/2011

Proposed changes to the way housing benefit is paid could hit housing associations with an extra £30 million a year in interest payments, the National Housing Federation has warned.

Completions for house builder rise by more than a quarter

05/07/2011

House builder Galliford Try has reported a 27 per cent increase in housing completions for its trading year, which ended on 30 June.

House builder sells Scottish operation

01/07/2011

Housebuilder Redrow has sold its Scottish operation to Springfield Properties Plc for £49 million.

Councils plan to raise billions from bond market

01/07/2011

Councils are drawing up plans to borrow billions on the bond market to fund new homes, a move which could hike costs for housing associations.

Power to the people

01/07/2011

What led to Places for People’s success in issuing the sector’s first retail bond?

Signs of stability in housing market

30/06/2011

The housing market is showing increasing signs of stability, with some improvement in mortgage availability, according to Taylor Wimpey.

Economic case could win over government

28/06/2011

Housing providers must convince government of the economic case for investing in affordable homes rather than focusing on need, Shelter’s head of policy has said.

Hometrack records surge in house sales

27/06/2011

House sales in the last month have risen 10.6 per cent, with more buyers registering interest with agents.

Borrowing cap for councils to stay

24/06/2011

The borrowing cap under the new self-financing system for council housing services will not be removed, a senior civil servant has said.

Explore new territory

24/06/2011

Welfare reform is a good opportunity for private landlords to get involved in the social housing sector

National £500m bond plan dropped

24/06/2011

Plans for a £500 million national housing bond have been ditched following concerns about the effect on existing lending agreements - but other funding models are still being explored.

HRA reform could halt demolition

23/06/2011

The new system of self-financing could deter authorities from demolishing old stock, a fringe session at the Chartered Institute of Housing conference in Harrogate has heard.

Lenders urged to back self builders

21/06/2011

Housing minister Grant Shapps has written to lenders urging them to support self builders.

Housing association raises £140 million through a financial first

20/06/2011

Places for People has raised £140 million through the sector’s first ever retail bond.

Default hurdles creep up

17/06/2011

Lenders are adding to areas which trigger a loan default, says Louise Leaver, partner, head of finance, at Winckworth Sherwood

Landlords hit by Kinetics collapse

17/06/2011

Landlords in the north of England have been scrabbling to find cover after several subsidiaries of contractor Kinetics collapsed.

Places for People eyes £100m bond

17/06/2011

Places for People has doubled the size of its planned retail bond to £100 million.

Economic pressures mount for housing associations

15/06/2011

Housing providers are increasingly concerned that different economic problems will combine to damage their businesses.

Housing market stays flat

14/06/2011

The housing market has failed to pick up in the last quarter, with little sign of an increased appetite to view property, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

Administrators sell part of Kinetics as redundancies hit

13/06/2011

The administrators for stricken social housing contractor Kinetics have sold part of the group but 273 staff have been made redundant.

HIAs turn to green deal in face of cuts

10/06/2011

Home improvement agencies in England are eyeing the health and environment industries to help replace the £300 million of funding to upgrade private sector homes, which has been axed by the government.

Contractor's subsidiary goes into administration

08/06/2011

A subsidiary of contractor Kinetics Group has been wound up and another has gone into administration.

Landlord plans £50m retail bond

03/06/2011

Places for People is in talks with investors about issuing the sector’s first ever retail bond.

House prices rise across much of the country

01/06/2011

House prices have risen across much of the country in the past month but remain lower than at the same time last year.

Housing associations and councils sign up for '£50 billion' retrofit scheme

31/05/2011

A total of 12 housing associations and four councils in Liverpool have signed up to a retrofit scheme.

Vela: ‘Merger will help us build more’

27/05/2011

Staff at 17,000-home Vela Group barely had time to catch their breath between the group’s creation in December 2010 and the biggest shake-up in housing policy and funding in half a century.

CIH reports drop in income

25/05/2011

The Chartered Institute of Housing has reported a drop in overall income of £229,000.

Contractor announces leap in profits

23/05/2011

Mitie has reported a 16.5 per cent increase in its operating profit.

A third of social landlords expect a double dip recession

20/05/2011

More than a third of social landlords think government spending cuts will cause a double dip recession, an auditor has warned.

Money matters

20/05/2011

Unfortunately, social landlords and the relatively large sums in which they regularly deal have become an established target for fraudsters. It has to be hoped that the warning from the Tenant Services Authority this week prevents any other landlords falling foul of the latest scam.

Kier issues positive trading update

18/05/2011

Kier has issued a trading statement saying its financial performance is in line with expectations.

Urgent reform needed to stop boom and bust

17/05/2011

Urgent action is needed to tackle housing market volatility to prevent another cycle of boom and bust, according to a report.

British Gas buys contractor for £30 million

16/05/2011

British Gas has acquired Cheshire-based central heating contractor PH Jones for £30 million.

Remortgaging on the rise

16/05/2011

Remortgaging increased during the first quarter of 2011, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

Hammersmith tops table

13/05/2011

Social landlords sold 24 homes at auction for a total of £3.57 million in April. This was down 82 per cent from the £19.92 million raised in March.

Housing association goes for bond after credit rating

11/05/2011

Moat has secured an AA2 credit rating ahead of a potential bond issue later in the year.

Builders release positive trading updates

11/05/2011

House builder Barratt Homes is predicting an upturn in profits by the end of its financial year.

Shapps announces £30 million fund for stalled pathfinder schemes

09/05/2011

Housing minister Grant Shapps has announced a £30 million fund to help households in blighted neighbourhoods after the premature end of the housing market renewal programme.

First time buyers at highest level for a year

09/05/2011

The proportion of prospective home buyers who are buying for the first time is at its highest level for more than a year.

Housing associations cut development by half

06/05/2011

England’s largest housing associations have slashed development programmes by up to 50 per cent, bids submitted to the Homes and Communities Agency this week reveal.

Pathfinder areas plea for £60m lifeline

06/05/2011

The government should put up £60 million to help northern councils deal with the blight left by the now-defunct housing market renewal pathfinders, an influential group of MPs will be told.

Symphony: ‘merger will save £80 million’

06/05/2011

In the first of our new series we visit Symphony Housing Group

Council negotiating 'land for homes' exchange deal with housing association

05/05/2011

Islington Council is negotiating a deal with a large housing association which would see it contribute land in return for the building of homes for social rent.

Contractor issues positive trading update

05/05/2011

Social housing contractor Morgan Sindall has issued a positive trading update ahead of its annual general meeting today.

Testing times

03/05/2011

As the deadline passes for bids for development under the affordable rent programme, Katherine Evans examines how the planning process could hinder the new regime

House prices avoid fall for first time in nine months

02/05/2011

House prices have stayed unchanged for the first time in nine months, a survey has revealed.

Bigger isn’t better

28/04/2011

Small landlords can make big changes but the government must help them

Purchasing power

28/04/2011

Housing providers are used to counting the financial cost of the items they procure. But tough carbon cutting measures mean they must also keep an eye on their environmental cost. Here Caroline Thorpe reveals the carbon footprint of 15 of the items most commonly purchased by the sector

Westminster hires Pinnacle for £22.5m

28/04/2011

Westminster Council will award private company Pinnacle PSG a £22.5 million contract to manage half its housing stock.

Housing more affordable for key workers - except in London

27/04/2011

Housing has become more affordable for key workers since prices peaked in 2007, the Halifax has said.

Care for elderly to spiral with cuts

26/04/2011

Elderly and vulnerable people will face increased costs to their care as councils face budget cuts.

Sales on the up for house builder

21/04/2011

Persimmon has reported improved sales for the first quarter of 2011.

Livingstone attacks Boris in affordable rent row

21/04/2011

The government’s affordable rent plans will be beyond the means of many residents in London and will ‘destroy’ the finances of housing associations, Ken Livingstone has said.

All change, please

21/04/2011

With landlords everywhere adapting to the radical shifts taking place in the economic and political landscape, Inside Housing will be travelling up and down the country in the coming weeks to plot their progress. Carl Brown finds out what landlords should be concerned about as he kicks off the first in our series on the State of the Nation

Institutional investment is still uncertain

21/04/2011

Are financial institutions finally ready to back private rented homes?

Interest in housing market picks up

20/04/2011

The number of people looking to buy a home in the UK increased sharply in March, according to estate agents.

Financial rules could wipe £1 billion from housing associations' assets

19/04/2011

New accounting rules will reduce the book value of England’s housing associations’ assets by more than £1 billion, the National Housing Federation has said.

£77m project at risk as builder collapses

15/04/2011

A £77 million housing project in Scotland is in jeopardy following the collapse of R&D Construction Group.

Report: grant HAs freedom

15/04/2011

Housing associations should receive more freedom to manage their assets in return for developing community ownership models, according to think tank Respublica.

Banks to agree terms of HRA exit loans

14/04/2011

Three leading banks will meet with a group of councils next week to set out the terms under which they will offer loans to help them leave the housing subsidy system.

Housing market remains flat in March

12/04/2011

Members of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors have reported the housing market remained flat in March.

Scottish Labour party releases manifesto

08/04/2011

The Scottish Labour party has promised secure and affordable homes for tenants in its party manifesto.

Auction sales down by £8.8m

08/04/2011

Social landlords sold 90 homes at auction in March raising £19.92 million.

Borrowing cost rise for sector

08/04/2011

Government moves to pay housing benefit directly to tenants have made it more expensive for social landlords to borrow from the capital markets.

Dark day for housing services

08/04/2011

Housing professionals have experienced the bleakest week for a generation as hundreds of projects closed or had their funding slashed.

New homes bonus 'unfair'

08/04/2011

The new homes bonus will disproportionately benefit wealthier areas, the shadow housing minister has said.

Softer approach would be welcome

08/04/2011

Is the Financial Services Authority softening its approach to mortgages, asks Michael Coogan

The REIT stuff

08/04/2011

REITS could help the private rented sector become the tenure of choice, says Simon Randall

Winning formula

08/04/2011

The Budget was generally good news for the housing sector

Landlords in bid to escape paying VAT

07/04/2011

Three housing associations based in the midlands are to apply to HM Revenue and Customs to be exempt from paying value added tax on shared services.

Firstbuy scheme launched

07/04/2011

The Homes and Communities Agency is inviting bids from house builders to offer homes for the £210 million firstbuy scheme.

Councils will not get RDA land

06/04/2011

The government has ruled out transferring regional development agency land assets to local government when the agencies wind up next year.

Benefit cut for underoccupiers 'will not save money'

05/04/2011

The government will spend more money than it saves by cutting housing benefit for social tenants who underoccupy their homes, Labour’s housing benefit spokesperson has warned.

Sickness benefit crackdown begins

05/04/2011

Ministers have launched their crackdown on sickness benefits, claiming half a million claimants could be ready to return to work straight away.

Labour criticises affordable rent programme

05/04/2011

Labour MPs yesterday criticised the government’s affordable rent programme, claiming ministers were not planning to build any new social homes at all.

£150m offer to plug long-term lending gap

01/04/2011

A Dutch lending model is being imported into the UK to provide £150 million worth of loans to housing associations struggling to secure long-term deals with their lenders.

Cameron set to beat house building record

01/04/2011

The coalition government is set to deliver more homes per year than any other administration for the past 20 years, according to the first major analysis of its affordable rent programme.

Contest searches for new star

01/04/2011

A competition to find housing’s next leaders is being launched by the Chartered Institute of Housing and Inside Housing this week.

Double trouble

01/04/2011

The double subsidy prohibition should not arise if landlords play their cards right on feed-in tariffs

Hyde ends Kinetics deal

01/04/2011

Hyde Group has terminated its £3 million gas servicing contract with contractor Kinetics.

Tenants forced to grow cannabis

01/04/2011

Loan sharks are forcing social housing tenants to convert rooms into cannabis farms when they are unable to make repayments.

Genesis sells its share in Church of England homes

31/03/2011

Genesis Housing Group has sold for £15 million its share of the company it created with property giant Grainger to buy up 1,100 Church of England homes.

Taylor Wimpey sells US arm to focus on UK

31/03/2011

Taylor Wimpey has sold its US and Canadian housing business as it looks to focus on UK operations.

Tribal profits down after public sector cuts

31/03/2011

Tribal Group has reported a £7.9 million drop in pre-tax profit but says it has increased its activity since the comprehensive spending review in October.

Shelter: government needs to protect tenants in PRS

30/03/2011

Shelter is calling on the government to give tenants in the private rented sector more protection as it reports a surge in problems with landlords.

Rewards for tenants shopping ASB neighbours

29/03/2011

Residents should be rewarded for shopping their anti-social neighbours to the police, the government’s safer communities tsar has urged.

Shared room rate to be brought forward

28/03/2011

Welfare reforms that opponents claim will put young people at risk of homelessness are to be brought forward by three months, the government announced today.

Lack of smaller homes for housing benefit changes

28/03/2011

Social landlords do not have enough smaller properties to accommodate tenants whose housing benefit is cut because they are underoccupying their homes.

FSA backs down on tough lending rules

25/03/2011

The Financial Services Authority has backed down on proposed mortgage lending rules that critics said would make it impossible for first-time buyers to get loans.

Beating the cuts

25/03/2011

Liverpool’s largest housing association is filling the gap left by grant cuts with its £700,000 social dividend fund, writes Helen Clifton

Eaga grasps £300m for solar panel fund

25/03/2011

Green contractor Eaga is planning to launch a series of special purpose vehicles to capitalise on the government’s renewable heat incentive and invest in retrofitting social homes.

Planning reforms could see developers pay for land after homes are built

25/03/2011

Councils and government departments have been told to stand up and be counted in a bid to get new developments off the ground.

Senior housing staff issue stark warning over SP cuts

25/03/2011

Funding cuts to schemes for vulnerable people will lead to increased homelessness and service closures, housing professionals have warned.

Stamp duty could see thousands of homes built

25/03/2011

Landlords predict thousands of new homes could be built as a result of changes to stamp duty and real estate investment trusts.

Housing association assets reach £100bn

24/03/2011

Housing association assets have hit the £100 billion mark for the first time, a report from the Tenant Services Authority has found.

Housing benefit changes will 'significantly impact' Wales

24/03/2011

Westminster’s decision to change housing benefit policies will have ‘significant impact’ on the work the Welsh Assembly Government is doing to improve housing, the deputy housing minister has warned.

Nottingham SP judicial review rejected

24/03/2011

A judicial review request to challenge Supporting People cuts made by Nottingham Council has been turned down by a High Court judge.

'Greenest government ever' under threat

23/03/2011

Sustainability figures have questioned the coalition’s claim to be the ‘greenest government ever’ after the Budget scaled back policies on zero carbon homes and retrofit.

A shot in the arm for housing

23/03/2011

Support for first time buyers is welcome, but it won’t solve the housing crisis on its own, says Steve Turner

Land auctions to be piloted

23/03/2011

The chancellor has announced plans to pilot ‘land auctions’ in a bid to stimulate growth by driving down the price of land for development.

Santander warns over first time buyers scheme

23/03/2011

One of the housing sector’s largest lenders has sounded a note of caution over the chancellor’s new scheme to help first time buyers.

Budget to unveil sweeping planning changes

23/03/2011

Major changes to the planning system are expected to be announced today as the chancellor unveils a Budget intended to promote growth.

Direct payments would harm credit ratings

22/03/2011

A leading ratings agency has warned that housing associations’ credit ratings will suffer if the government decides to pay housing benefit direct to tenants.

£1m package to tackle ASB

21/03/2011

The Home Secretary will today announce a £1 million funding package to help victims of anti-social behaviour.

Barker scales back feed-in tariff scheme

21/03/2011

Campaigners have warned that government plans to scale back the feed-in tariff scheme will prevent housing associations from generating their own renewable electricity.

City slickers

18/03/2011

There’s a new bonds player in the Square Mile hoping to attract housing associations with its flexible offer. Nick Duxbury meets the brains behind GB Social Housing to find out what the deal is.

Meet the bankers

18/03/2011

With government grants drying up, banks will be key to filling the sector’s funding gaps. Nick Duxbury asks which lenders housing finance directors should get to know

Spring clean

18/03/2011

Considering rationalising your stock to boost your revenues? Richard Petty explains how to get your house in order

Taking the wheel

18/03/2011

Leaving the council house subsidy system gives local authorities in England licence to take control of their finances for the first time. Neil Merrick finds out what they plan to do with their new-found freedom

Associations at risk of privatisation

16/03/2011

Associations risk being taken over by the government or the private sector if they don’t use their balance sheet capacity, the chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Housing has said.

Pension fund cash to boost social housing

15/03/2011

The Scottish Government is close to getting pension fund money into the social housing sector, the minister announced today.

Homelessness applications rise

14/03/2011

Homeless applicants were up 15 per cent on the same quarter last year, according to government statistics.

Kier wins reduction on cover pricing fine

14/03/2011

Repairs and construction group Kier has won an appeal to reduce a fine obtained after an investigation into cover pricing.

Coalfields cash drops

11/03/2011

Housing minister Grant Shapps announced a £30million funding for the government’s national coalfield programme yesterday, which was a slight drop from the previous three years.

Auction sales rise by £27 million

11/03/2011

Councils and housing associations sold 126 homes at auction in February, raising £28.67 million.

Legal showdown looms as Broxtowe fights SP cuts

11/03/2011

Broxtowe Council is planning to launch legal action against Nottinghamshire Council to prevent the county authority slashing its budget for supported housing.

Liverpool pushes solar energy plan

11/03/2011

Housing associations in Liverpool plan to set up a city-wide enterprise to install photovoltaic panels on tens of thousands of homes.

Midland Heart plans £150m bond

11/03/2011

Midland Heart plans to issue a £150 million bond after securing a positive credit rating.

Richer tenants to be targeted

11/03/2011

Housing associations are considering only letting affordable rent properties to tenants who can afford to pay the rent without help from housing benefit, the Chartered Institute of Housing has warned.

Housing employees face longer working lives

10/03/2011

Housing staff will face larger pension contributions and have to work longer to cut the cost of public sector pension provision, a report said today.

IDS promises help to families hit by benefit cap

09/03/2011

Families hit by the government’s £26,000 benefits cap for workless households will receive ‘intense’ help to prevent them losing their homes, the work and pensions secretary promised today.

Landlords 'must get used to non-direct payments'

09/03/2011

Social landlords have to prepare themselves for not getting direct payments of housing benefit, the deputy chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Housing has said.

House prices drop

08/03/2011

London was the only region in England and Wales to record rising house prices last month, according to a survey by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors.

TSA warns landlords over vulnerabilities

07/03/2011

The Tenant Services Authority has warned two housing associations that they are ‘vulnerable to deterioration’.

New bond player promises flexibility

04/03/2011

A new player in the social housing bond market plans to issue its first £150 million bond this summer.

Leading house builder returns to profit

03/03/2011

Taylor Wimpey returned to profitability in 2010 after recording substantial losses the previous year, its annual results show.

Land Registry: house prices down 0.9%

01/03/2011

House prices were 0.9 per cent down in January compared to the same month last year, according to the latest Land Registry statistics.

Peabody bond issue imminent

01/03/2011

Housing association Peabody’s planned bond is expected to be issued within days.

Banks ‘need clarity’ on payments

25/02/2011

Private finance for the development of homes for affordable rent could be derailed unless the government resolves how housing benefit will be paid to social tenants, lenders have warned.

Councils reject HRA conditions

25/02/2011

Councils have demanded the government drops legislation which could see authorities take on additional debt as part of their housing finance settlement.

Barratt doubles social housing completions

24/02/2011

Barratt has reported a doubling of its social housing completions.

Genesis appoints replacement for finance boss

23/02/2011

Genesis Housing Group has appointed a new group director of finance after the surprise departure of Mark Gayfer last year.

Lovell profits up after Connaught buy out

22/02/2011

Morgan Sindall has said its affordable housing business has been strengthened by the acquisition of contracts from stricken rival Connaught last year.

Eco-groups warn high interest green loans could hit retrofit plans

18/02/2011

Government plans to improve the energy efficiency of homes could be dashed by green deal loans with interest rates of more than 8 per cent.

New rent rules restrict out of area investment

18/02/2011

Landlords fear funding rules for the government’s £1.8 billion affordable housing programme will prevent them ploughing cash raised in high-value areas into cheaper regions of England.

Councils awarded decent homes cash

17/02/2011

Local authorities which manage their own homes have been awarded decent homes funding for the first time, the Homes and Communities Agency has announced.

CIH warns affordable rent model is flawed

16/02/2011

The Chartered Institute of Housing has said the principle behind the government’s affordable rent scheme is ‘flawed’, despite welcoming some of the plans.

First-time buyer drop raises concerns

15/02/2011

The proportion of buyers who are purchasing a home for the first time has dropped to below one in four, according to a survey by the website Rightmove.

Ministers to set out affordable rent plans

14/02/2011

The framework document for the government’s new affordable rent regime will be published today.

Barratt plans move into private sector

11/02/2011

One of the country’s largest house builders is planning to set up as a private landlord.

Homes raise more than £750k

11/02/2011

Landlords sold 16 properties at auction in January raising more than £750,000.

Funding models vulnerable to market

09/02/2011

A report has questioned the viability of funding models being put forward by the Scottish Government to secure investment in affordable housing.

Bellway reports positive start to year

08/02/2011

Bellway has reported an ‘encouraging’ start to 2011.

Bills to increase for Scottish associations

04/02/2011

Scottish housing association turnover outpaced inflation in the last full financial year, but the sector faces significant financial stresses in the future.These were key findings in the Scottish Housing Regulator’s analysis of the finances of Scottish landlords in 2009/10, published this week.

Housing association plans £100m bond

03/02/2011

London-based housing association Peabody is planning to raise at least £100 million on the UK bond market.

LGA warns councils face £6.5bn shortfall

01/02/2011

The Local Government Association has warned local authorities face a £6.5 billion shortfall, as ministers confirmed the finance settlement for councils.

Contractor Kinetics in £2m cash call

28/01/2011

Social housing contractor Kinetics Group has secured an extra £2 million investment from its majority investor to cope with supply chain restrictions imposed in the wake of the collapse of rival firms Connaught and Rok.

Public sector homes up by 8%

28/01/2011

Registrations for new public sector homes increased by 8 per cent in the past three months of 2010 compared with the same period the previous year, according to the National House Building Council.

Service charge to be included in 80% rents

28/01/2011

Service charges will be included in the new affordable rent regime, Inside Housing understands.

Councils shun call to spare supported housing

25/01/2011

Councils are planning to push ahead with funding cuts to services for vulnerable people despite government recommendations, a survey has suggested.

Derby to cut £5m from housing budget

24/01/2011

Derby Council will reduce its health and housing budget by £5 million over the next three years, from £75 million to £70 million.

Ujima suspect defends innocence

21/01/2011

One of the defendants in the Ujima money laundering case has claimed in court he had no reason to suspect he was handling stolen money.

Councils could block new rent

21/01/2011

Housing associations fear their ambitions to rent homes at the government’s new affordable rent level will be frustrated by councils opposed to the tenure.

Housing associations to take the lead on planning blueprints

21/01/2011

Housing associations will play a key role in helping low-income communities draw up planning blueprints, the decentralisation minister has pledged.

Moat creates valuation arm

21/01/2011

Moat is to set up a panel of experts to value its stock to prevent tenants from being charged too much rent.

Nightmare on Greek Street

21/01/2011

The government has withdrawn funding from England’s first nine pathfinders. Without cash to complete their projects, Keith Cooper asks what the future holds for the areas they were created to regenerate and the residents trapped in nightmare neighbourhoods.

Play the system

21/01/2011

Labour-led councils can use the coaltion’s social housing reforms to forge their own agenda

Review assesses effect of benefit caps

21/01/2011

The government’s £26,000 cap on the benefits a workless family can claim will provide ‘strong incentives’ to return to work, a new report suggests.

Scottish first for Glen Oaks with £14.3m bond deal

21/01/2011

A Scottish housing association has become the first landlord north of the border to raise long-term finance on the UK bond market.

Tough Guy

21/01/2011

After the collapse of contractors Connaught and Rok there’s talk that Morrison could be next. Boss Guy Wakeley tells Carl Brown his company ‘cannot go bust’.

Union threatens Hull Council with tribunal

20/01/2011

Union bosses have threatened to haul Hull Council’s housing maintenance contractors before an employment tribunal after they refused to pay 129 maintenance workers.

Quarter of hostel bed spaces could go

19/01/2011

A quarter of hostel bed spaces for rough sleepers in England are threatened because of drastic Supporting People cuts, Homeless Link has warned.

Neath Port Talbot campaigners demand transfer re-think

19/01/2011

Campaigners in Wales are demanding a council drop plans to transfer its stock to a housing association after it was rapped over the knuckles for the way tenants were consulted.

L & Q set up in-house construction business

18/01/2011

London & Quadrant has set up its own in-house construction business.

Charity loses deputy CEO

17/01/2011

Kent-based homelessness charity Porchlight is to lose its long-serving deputy chief executive Rachel Holliday in March as part of a restructuring process.

Housing cash should stay in Wales, says Lib Dem spokesperson

17/01/2011

The Welsh Liberal Democrat housing spokesperson has called for housing funding rules to be changed after figures revealed social landlords are struggling to meet housing refurbishment standards.

One hundred thousand council jobs at risk, says the GMB

17/01/2011

The number of local authority jobs at risk has topped 100,000, a leading trade union has warned.

Affordable rent could add £1bn to benefit bill

14/01/2011

The government’s plans for a new ‘affordable rent’ tenure could add over £1 billion to the housing benefit bill.

Councils told to raise rents by 6.8 per cent

14/01/2011

The government has recommended that all councils raise their rents by 6.8 per cent from April this year.

Landlords plan major cost cuts

14/01/2011

Nearly one in four housing associations are planning to reduce their costs by more than £750,000 in the next financial year, according to a study by accountancy firm Baker Tilly.

Readers dig deep for charities

14/01/2011

People in housing difficulty will now get more help, thanks to Inside Housing readers.

Fast-track evictions unlikely to work, says housing association

13/01/2011

The government’s plans to allow social landlords to fast-track evictions is unlikely to work because of recent case law, says Riverside Housing Association.

Housing benefit cuts endanger Scottish homelessness pledge

13/01/2011

The Westminster government’s controversial housing benefit reforms risk scuppering Holyrood’s pledge to end homelessness in the country by 2012.

Mortgage lending to remain constrained, says Hometrack

13/01/2011

Mortgage lending will continue to be restrained throughout 2011, according to Hometrack.

Crown Estate confirms sale to Peabody

12/01/2011

The Crown Estate has confirmed it will sell four London housing estates to Peabody.

Mears reports 'watershed' year

12/01/2011

Mears has reported a £100 million increased in its order book due to contract wins at the end of a ‘watershed’ year.

Workers forced onto housing benefit, says Unison

11/01/2011

Low wages and high rents are forcing hundreds of thousands of workers onto housing benefit, a trade union has warned.

Welsh council sets up own estate agency

10/01/2011

A council in Wales has set up an estate and lettings agency to bring in cash to the council and help the homeless.

A new year erupts

07/01/2011

Are you ready for another explosive year? To stop you getting lost amid the shifting landscape, Lydia Stockdale has the essential guide to the months ahead

Looking ahead

07/01/2011

As Inside Housing has asked a group of chief executives to peer into the murk of 2011 and conjure up some predictions for the changing shape of housing over the next 12 months, it seems only fair that I put my own neck on the line. So here goes:

US fund to loan landlords up to £1bn

07/01/2011

A US-based infrastructure fund is set to start lending to housing associations within months, according to its British representative.

What’s on the cards for 2011?

07/01/2011

The events of 2010 caught many in social housing by surprise. To avoid similar shocks in 2011, Inside Housing asks eight housing chiefs to dabble in tarot and predict the year ahead. Nick Duxbury listens in.

Flexibility needed to meet building goals

05/01/2011

Housing associations will need flexibility to use some of their stock for low-cost homeownership or outright sale to meet house building goals, a study has found.

Minister seeks stable house prices

04/01/2011

Grant Shapps has pledged to use government levers to encourage house building in a bid to stabilise house prices.

Hometrack records 1.6% price fall for 2010

27/12/2010

House prices fell by an average of 1.6 per cent across England and Wales during 2010, according to Hometrack.

Tenure split for £4.5bn building fund

21/12/2010

The government intends to split its development funding between homes for social rent and its new affordable rent product.

Low-cost home ownership sales plummet

20/12/2010

Sales of low-cost homes by housing associations fell by 11 per cent in the last quarter, according to new figures from the Tenant Services Authority.

New fund to attract £1.4bn for retrofit

17/12/2010

A £5 million revolving fund will attract a further £1.4 billion to retrofit more than 62,000 homes in the south east of England by 2050, a housing association has claimed.

The year that changed social housing forever

17/12/2010

With a new government, massive reforms and brutal cuts, the past 12 months has seen unprecedented change to the social housing landscape. Inside Housing looks back at the major events of 2010

Infrastructure fund delivers alternative to bonds

16/12/2010

A British representative for a US-based infrastructure fund has launched a programme to make hundreds of millions of pounds available for social housing projects.

Northern areas bear brunt of spending cuts

15/12/2010

Northern communities will be worst hit by local government spending cuts, the National Housing Federation has found.

Poor areas hit by local government cuts

14/12/2010

Some of the poorest areas of England will see the most severe local government funding cuts next year.

Treasury to keep bulk of RTB receipts

13/12/2010

The government will continue to receive 75 per cent of receipts from right to buy sales following reform of the council housing finance system.

Funding cuts may undermine Localism Bill

13/12/2010

Local government funding cuts due to be announced today could undermine the objectives of the Localism Bill, a think tank has warned.

Auction sales down by £14.1m

10/12/2010

Social landlords sold 24 homes at auction in November raising £3.3 million.

HCA targets large landlords

10/12/2010

A radical shake-up of social housing funding could allow a handful of large housing associations to snap up the bulk of government funding until 2015.

Plus Dane leads call for £500m bond

10/12/2010

A housing association is in talks with the Homes and Communities Agency about issuing a £500 million group national bond to fund more development.

Westminster co-op has new leaders

10/12/2010

A housing co-operative declared ‘technically insolvent’ has come under the control of a new management committee, which says it can trade successfully.

Councils seek early exit from HRA

08/12/2010

Three local authorities will today ask the government to allow them to leave the council housing finance scheme early.

Banks set to offer growth fund support

07/12/2010

Lord Heseltine has revealed that four high street banks are working with the government on allowing projects access to the £1.4 billion regional growth fund.

Bid for ALMOs to access private cash

03/12/2010

Arm’s-length management organisations could access private finance under new models being developed by policy leaders.

Rent review could lower credit rating

03/12/2010

Housing associations hoping to use the new affordable rent regime to attract private finance will have to cut their development levels or risk weakening their credit rating, analysts have warned.

Thames Valley HA to lend mortgages

03/12/2010

A housing association has set itself up as a mortgage lender because of its frustration with established lenders restricting the number of shared ownership loans they make on its schemes.

November house prices fall 0.3 per cent

02/12/2010

House prices fell 0.3 per cent in November, taking them back to within half a per cent of prices a year ago, according to Nationwide.

Watchdog to examine Connaught audit

30/11/2010

A watchdog has launched an investigation into Pricewaterhouse Cooper’s auditing of Connaught’s accounts before its demise.

£26m cut threatens new home building in Wales

26/11/2010

The Welsh social housing sector is trying to find ways to boost supply after it emerged social housing grant is the biggest loser in the the country’s budget.

On the mend

26/11/2010

The collapse of social housing contractors Connaught and Rok has left many landlords’ maintenance contracts in disarray. Here Lydia Stockdale speaks to three housing associations to find out how they are coping and what lessons they have learned.

Reform casts a long shadow

26/11/2010

‘I know this is not going to be easy,’ says housing minister Grant Shapps in the foreword to the consultation document published this week, which effectively sweeps away decades of social housing policy in England. He is not wrong.

Holt stands down as Mears chief executive

25/11/2010

The chief executive of social housing repairs and maintenance contractor Mears, Bob Holt, is stepping down from the role.

TSA confirms 5.1 per cent rent increase

24/11/2010

The Tenant Services Authority has confirmed next year’s guideline limit for housing association rents will be increased by 5.1 per cent.

Councils must wait for debt settlement

22/11/2010

Local authorities will learn how much debt they must take on to gain full control of their housing revenues early next year.

ALMOs could stop decent homes work

19/11/2010

Angry arm’s-length management organisations could be forced to stop decent homes work almost immediately, following a hard line government funding settlement.

Give us our fair share

19/11/2010

Shared ownership can help the housing crisis but the FSA’s review is not helping

Landlords seek clarity on direct payments

19/11/2010

Social landlords are seeking clarity on whether benefit reforms will see them issued with payments directly.

Setback for bank launch

19/11/2010

Plans to launch a £175 million shared ownership bank have suffered an early setback after an initial meeting was called off due to lack of interest.

Councils to get more cash from development

18/11/2010

New reforms will give more of the benefits of development to communities while providing more certainty for industry, decentralisation minister Greg Clark said today.

Disappointment at Scottish and Welsh budget cuts

18/11/2010

Charities and sector bodies have called the housing budget cuts in Wales and Scotland ‘disappointing’ and ‘a bitter blow’.

Welsh slash housing spending

17/11/2010

The Welsh Assembly Government has cut its housing budget by £26 million.

Association taps bond market for £124m

17/11/2010

Circle Anglia has raised £124 million on the UK bond market to fund its development plans.

Mortgage review threatens housing market

17/11/2010

Housing bodies have written to the chancellor warning proposed changes to mortgage regulation will have ‘dire consequences’ for the market.

L&Q sets up £1.25bn house building fund

16/11/2010

London and Quadrant is to set up a £1.25 billion revolving facility to fund new homes.

Finance reforms could fund 1 million homes

16/11/2010

Reducing the cost of land and the interest rates paid by social landlords could fund one million new homes in the next five years, a think tank has said.

Persimmon sales remain stable

15/11/2010

Persimmon has reported its sales volumes are remaining stable and prices holding firm.

Government gives NTV grant

12/11/2010

Four national tenant organisations have been given £50,000 from the government to look into ways of continuing to operate a national tenant council. 

Developers to face additional charge

12/11/2010

Southwark Council plans to raise money for new homes by charging developers a premium on the extra profit they make from developments which don’t include affordable housing.

Repairs crisis as Rok enters administration

12/11/2010

Several landlords are facing a second battle in as many months to keep repairs services running, after Rok went into administration this week.

Support our charities this festive season

12/11/2010

Inside Housing this week launches its Christmas appeal designed to help some of the UK’s most important causes during the current turbulent economic times.

Surveyors gloomy on market prospects

09/11/2010

The latest data from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors shows its members believe house prices are continuing to fall.

Building drive will cut social housing

09/11/2010

Social housing stock in England will decline by 123,000 homes over the next four years as a result of government proposals, the National Housing Federation has calculated.

CLG given timetable for housing reform

08/11/2010

The government has published a business plan for the Communities and Local Government department, setting out how it will meet housing aspirations.

Galliford Try issues trading update

08/11/2010

Galliford Try has reported a strong balance sheet and a steady order book.

‘Affordable rent’ to derail development

05/11/2010

Social landlords in the north and midlands are set to be the biggest losers under the government’s new affordable rent regime.

On the continent

05/11/2010

The EU must reflect the role social landlords can play in achieving wider targets in its budget review

Time for creative thinking

05/11/2010

‘Once more unto the breach, dear friends,’ came Henry V’s celebrated cry to his troops as they besieged the French city of Harfleur in 1415. At least that’s Shakespeare’s rendering of events.

London seeks half of new homes cash

04/11/2010

Boris Johnson is asking for half of the money available for building new affordable housing over the next four years to be spent in London.

Aldwyck takes over Connaught venture

03/11/2010

Housing group Aldwyck will become the sole owner of a maintenance firm it set up with collapsed contractor Connaught.

Scottish ministers urged to resist cuts

02/11/2010

Senior figures in the housing world in Scotland have written to first minister Alex Salmond urging him not to drop funding for housing.

Rent rise threatens housing benefit reforms

29/10/2010

Ministers have been warned plans to increase rents for affordable housing will drive up housing benefit costs and discourage tenants from seeking work.

Hit where it hurts

29/10/2010

The coalition insists everyone will suffer from cuts made in the comprehensive spending review - but some will feel more pain than others, argues Chris Blackhurst

Stormy weather

29/10/2010

Last week’s comprehensive spending review hit social housing hard. Martin Hilditch assesses the damage

The bigger picture

29/10/2010

Reduced investment in social housing is a heavy blow, but building new homes is only part of the solution to the sector’s problems

Tough times ahead

28/10/2010

On the eve of his departure from the HCA, Sir Bob Kerslake looks at what the agency has achieved and how the sector can adapt to the ‘fundamental’ changes in the spending review

Spending review is 'assault' on tenants

27/10/2010

Campaigners have accused the government of launching an assault on tenants’ rights in its comprehensive spending review.

Council merger could save £100m

25/10/2010

The housing departments of three London councils could merge as part of a plan to save up to £100 million.

Cuts will have 'devastating impact' on Northern Ireland

25/10/2010

Politicians and social landlords in Northern Ireland have warned that the comprehensive spending review will have a ‘devastating impact’ on housing in the province.

Boris to set up housing taskforce

22/10/2010

Boris Johnson is to set up a housing investment task force to try and attract private financing to the sector.

Increased rents could build 15,000 homes a year

22/10/2010

The new rent regime could generate £1.5bn of extra borrowing capacity for housing associations enabling nearly 15,000 new homes to be built a year, the Chartered Institute of Housing has calculated.

Landlords call on EU to open up its £200bn fund

22/10/2010

Landlords across Europe are calling for the EU Commission to release billions of pounds of extra funds for housing in member states.

Liverpool and EDF in largest ever CESP deal

22/10/2010

Liverpool Mutual Homes and EDF energy have agreed the largest deal to date under the Community Energy Savings Programme.

Swept aside

22/10/2010

How housing’s spending review pain began in negotiations to form the coalition government

The first cut is the deepest

22/10/2010

Social housing ‘is currently failing to address the needs of the country’ and must be reformed.

Homelessness grant held at £100m a year

21/10/2010

Homelessness grant is to remain at £100 million a year for the spending review period, but concerns have been raised about the removal of ringfencing.

Shapps defends ‘radical’ social housing reforms

21/10/2010

The Communities and Local Government department had an ‘enormous’ and ‘over-bloated’ budget before it was cut in half, according to the housing minister.

Ready for the challenge

20/10/2010

There are no great surprises in the CSR – we all knew cuts were coming and in this current climate we all have to “do better with less” – this is where we need to think differently and maximise the potential of all our staff and resources to get the best out of them for those we serve.

Social landlords to set tenancies and rents

20/10/2010

Social landlords are to be given the freedom to raise rents towards market levels and introduce time-limited tenancies, the government has announced.

A fair future?

20/10/2010

Public service reform and fairness are said to be the guiding principles of the comprehensive spending review. Reform of social housing is seen to be part of this.

CLG budget to be cut by 51 per cent

20/10/2010

The Communities and Local Government department is to have its budget cut by 51 per cent over the next four years.

Green campaigners threaten legal action

20/10/2010

The government could face legal action if it cuts payments to homeowners who generate their own renewable energy.

Public backs cuts to social housing funding

20/10/2010

The public supports cuts to social housing but believes services tackling crime and anti-social behaviour should be protected, a survey had found.

HCA publishes spending breakdown

19/10/2010

The Homes and Communities Agency has for the first time published a detailed breakdown by local authority area of its spending.

Secure tenancies face axe as funding is cut

19/10/2010

Ministers are expected to scrap tenancy for life in the wake of massive funding cuts in tomorrow’s comprehensive spending review.

Budget cuts would halt HCA funding

18/10/2010

Spending cuts could mean the Homes and Communities Agency will not be able to fund any new house starts next year, one of its directors has warned.

Financial changes threaten affordable housing

15/10/2010

Weakening the financial position of housing associations could have serious social consequences, a consultant has warned.

A bitter pill to swallow

15/10/2010

The coalition government’s cutbacks are starting to bite and it’s only just the beginning, says Jon Cruddas

Executive faces double review

15/10/2010

The Northern Irish social development minister has launched two separate reviews which will decide the fate of the Northern Ireland Housing Executive.

Housing staff face pension cost hike

15/10/2010

Proposed changes to public sector pensions could have a direct impact on tens of thousands of housing professionals.

Pathfinders to join forces with LEPs

15/10/2010

Two housing market renewal pathfinders are planning to merge with new local enterprise partnerships.

Social landlords raise £13.76m

15/10/2010

Landlords raised a total of £13.76 million through the sale of properties at auction in September.

HCA confirmed to take on TSA regulation

14/10/2010

The Homes and Communities Agency has been saved in the bonfire of quangos and will take on regulation from the Tenant Services Authority, it has been confirmed.

Private firms could benefit social housing

12/10/2010

Business leaders have suggested the social housing sector should be opened up to private companies to improve the quality of homes.

House prices fall as sellers test market

12/10/2010

An influx of new sellers coupled with a shortage of buyers is pushing house prices down, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has said.

Large associations’ pension liability doubles to £509.1m in 12 months

08/10/2010

The UK’s largest housing associations saw their pension liabilities double in the past year, their annual accounts have revealed.

Shapps casts doubt over capital funding

08/10/2010

The current housing funding system has failed and the government will look at new models of investment in the future, the housing minister stressed this week.

Builder eyes social housing as profits rise

07/10/2010

Willmott Dixon has reported a 37 per cent increase in its pre-tax profits.

Associations stockpile cash ahead of cuts

07/10/2010

Housing associations saw their annual surpluses almost treble last year.

Shapps rules out early exit from HRA

05/10/2010

The opportunity for local authorities to voluntarily leave the housing revenue account subsidy system next April has been ruled out.

Olympics body seeks buyer for 4,000 homes

04/10/2010

The Olympic Delivery Authority is looking for private businesses to take on up to 4,000 homes on the Olympic site.

Mears acquires rival in £5.8m deal

01/10/2010

Mears has acquired north-west based maintenance and refurbishment company Jackson Lloyd in a deal worth up to £5.8 million

Landlords to fight Lovell debt demand

01/10/2010

Lovell is demanding some landlords repay money they owed to failed contractor Connaught, after taking over their contracts.

Westminster co-op insolvent after refusing £200k loan

01/10/2010

A housing co-operative in London has been declared insolvent after a group of members refused to let a social landlord lend it money in return for allowing it to enter a management contract.

Mortgage drop suggests weakening market

29/09/2010

Mortgage approvals have fallen for the fourth consecutive month, according to Bank of England data.

Lovell agrees terms with 42 Connaught clients

28/09/2010

Forty two housing associations and local authorities have so far agreed to transfer contracts previously held with Connaught to Lovell.

Healey tells CLG to come clean on cuts

24/09/2010

The shadow housing minister has demanded to know the extent of cuts to housing and regeneration budgets, after ministers agreed a secret deal with the Treasury.

Remaining relevant

24/09/2010

A fresh approach is needed if social landlords are to continue providing value

Associations should trade on stock market

23/09/2010

Housing associations could raise £30 billion and fund an extra 100,000 homes a year if they were allowed to raise money on the stock market, according to a report by a right-wing think tank.

Councils offered low cost homes advice

22/09/2010

Councils are being offered advice on developing affordable homes that are attractive to mortgage lenders.

Planners seek radical house building model

21/09/2010

Councils should issue bonds and give tax breaks to encourage building on designated sites, a planning body has said.

Beat the domino effect

17/09/2010

Housing providers must make contingency plans after the collapse of contractor Connaught. Andrew Millross and Richard More, from Anthony Collins Solicitors, explain how.

Double dipping

17/09/2010

Despite a rosy outlook in other parts of the world, the UK economy is not yet out of the woods and we must prepare for the possibility of a ‘double dipette’, says Chris Blackhurst

Knowsley plans £7 million cut

17/09/2010

A Merseyside housing association will cut its budget by up to £7 million in response to the government’s plans to slash housing benefit.

Sanctuary strikes £120m bond deal

17/09/2010

A housing association has launched the lowest priced bond in the sector for two-and-a-half years.

Time for a new paint job

17/09/2010

The collapse of contractor Connaught last week has left hundreds of social landlords scratching their heads over who should take over their repairs and maintenance contracts. Carl Brown investigates the options.

Kier sees profits rise 10 per cent

16/09/2010

Kier Group has reported an increase in pre-tax profits in preliminary full year results.

Redrow returns to profit

14/09/2010

House builder Redrow has reported a return to profitability in preliminary financial results for the year ending 30 June 2010.

Surveyors report house price falls

14/09/2010

Property prices have fallen for the second month in a row as more houses flood the market, surveyors have said.

Green planning statement shelved

13/09/2010

The government has shelved plans to publish a legally-binding statement on its planning policy on climate change and renewable energy, Inside Housing has learned.

Spending cuts threaten Scottish house building

10/09/2010

The UK government’s public spending cuts will impact on the level of investment in social housing in Scotland, the housing minister has warned.

A new contract

10/09/2010

Hard times call for radical changes - including a new contract between government and housing associations

Councils cut £400m on housing spend

10/09/2010

Councils spent £400 million less on improving existing or building new housing last year, despite an overall increase in their capital spending.

L&Q calls on government to strike landlord deal

10/09/2010

All housing associations should be able to sign a contract with government pledging to use their assets more effectively, in return for funding and regulation guarantees, according to a report out today.

Paying the price

10/09/2010

Sadly, the demise of social housing contractor Connaught will come as no great surprise to its hundreds of social landlord clients.

The sum of all failures

10/09/2010

A freedom of information request reveals councils are underestimating their housing benefit bills leaving central government owing nearly £600 million at the end of the year. Emily Twinch reports

Barratt cuts losses as business picks up

08/09/2010

Barratt Homes has reported a £33 million pre-tax loss for the year ending 30 June 2010, an improvement on the £144.1 million loss reported last year.

Association finances withstand economic fears

07/09/2010

Housing associations have proved ‘remarkably robust’ in the current economic climate, according to figures from the Tenant Services Authority.

Ready for reform

07/09/2010

With an announcement on the future of council housing finance due this month, social housing lawyer Kate Silverman examines what the current proposals would mean for local authorities and housing associations.

HCA signs landmark private sector deal

03/09/2010

The Homes and Communities Agency has agreed to give funding to a developer to build homes for private rent in the first deal of its kind.

Banging the drum

03/09/2010

It’s time to herald a new era of council-led house building, says John Lines

Going global

03/09/2010

There are lessons to be learned from comparing the mechanisms different countries use to channel financial resources into affordable housing

Treasury money saving site prompts 1,600 ideas

03/09/2010

Members of the public have submitted 1,600 suggestions about how the government could save money through housing cuts.

House prices fall for second month

02/09/2010

UK house prices fell 0.9 per cent in August, according to Nationwide, following a 0.5 per cent fall in July.

Demand for housing drops

30/08/2010

Demand for housing dropped by 2.2 per cent in August, according to a new survey.

UK Housing Award finalists unveiled

27/08/2010

More than 70 housing organisations have reached the final stages of the prestigious UK Housing Awards.

Find the right formula

27/08/2010

Every November, the eyes of finance directors across the housing world are peeled for the Tenant Services Authority’s announcement on what level rents can be set at the following financial year.

Landlords fear approach of rent overhaul

27/08/2010

Worried housing associations are planning for a dramatic change to the way rents are calculated which could cost the sector £20 billion.

Wates secures £400m framework deals

24/08/2010

Affordable housing construction firm Wates Living Space has agreed £400 million of framework contracts with supported housing providers.

ALMO ends contract with Connaught

23/08/2010

An arm’s-length management organisation has cancelled a £7 million repairs contract with struggling contractor Connaught.

Mortgage lending increases

20/08/2010

Gross mortgage lending increased by 5 per cent in July from the previous month, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

House starts up 13 per cent

20/08/2010

House starts in England are up 13 per cent in the last quarter to 28,590.

HCA map to pinpoint location of England’s 652,000 empty homes

20/08/2010

The Homes and Communities Agency will map every empty home in England in a bid to dramatically reduce their number - an estimated 652,000.The map will be used to pinpoint empty homes ‘hotspots’ and provide information on their surroundings.

‘Social model’ under financial threat

20/08/2010

The viability of the social housing model is under threat because of the financial pressures facing the sector, according to a new study from leading academics.

Affinity Sutton posts £44m surplus

20/08/2010

Affinity Sutton has used its annual report to argue that housing associations need a ‘stronger financial base’ than ever before to cope with forthcoming spending cuts.

Battle to overturn decision on legal aid

20/08/2010

Sheltered housing campaigners are fighting to get 5,000 people to sign a petition in protest at their claim for legal aid being turned down on a technicality.

Clegg: benefit cuts are hard to justify

20/08/2010

Nick Clegg has waded into the row over housing benefit reform by suggesting proposed cuts make it difficult to justify replacing the Trident nuclear weapon.

Opinion

20/08/2010

The new homes bonus is merely redistribution of old local authority grants

Sector plans as Connaught struggles

20/08/2010

Housing associations that hold contracts with beleaguered contractor Connaught are drawing up contingency plans in case the firm collapses.

Clegg unveils low carbon business programme

19/08/2010

Nick Clegg today claimed the government’s approach to sustainability was a ‘quiet green revolution’.

Harrow offers amnesty to sub-letters

19/08/2010

Harrow Council is giving illegal sub-letters two weeks to hand back their keys with no legal action before a crackdown.

Surveyors report fall in construction work

19/08/2010

Construction workloads on social housing projects have dropped sharply in the second quarter of the year, according to a survey by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors.

National Tenant Voice to wind down company structure

19/08/2010

The National Tenant Voice is to wind down its formal company structure as it seeks a way to carry on independently.

Highlands to get 400 homes with £40million deal

18/08/2010

Albyn Housing Society has agreed a £40m loan with the Royal Bank of Scotland and half the loan will be used to fund 400 homes for shared equity sale or for rent.

Black Country joins retrofit research project

18/08/2010

Black Country Housing Group is to take part in a major Europe-wide research project into the cost of retrofit work to existing homes.

Wider range of rental models needed, says CIH

17/08/2010

The ‘golden age’ of home ownership is over, according to a new report from the Chartered Institute of Housing.

Clegg: housing 'is UK's biggest problem'

17/08/2010

Access to affordable housing is one of the biggest problems faced by the UK, Nick Clegg said yesterday.

Tories exposed for mis-selling security

13/08/2010

The Conservative Party held pre-election meetings with key housing figures about its plans to remove security of tenure from future social housing tenants.

CLG spent thousands on public art and catering

13/08/2010

The Homes and Communities Agency splashed out £85,000 on art while the Tenant Services Authority spent £860 on flowers and £47,000 on a ‘business psychologist’ last year.

Berkeley close to private homes deal

13/08/2010

House builder Berkeley Homes is close to striking a deal with the Homes and Communities Agency to build 500 private rented sector homes.

Council cutbacks put charities at risk

13/08/2010

Homelessness charities face closure or huge losses in income as cash-strapped councils drop their services.

Heed Canada’s warning

13/08/2010

Canada is frequently cited as the ultimate example of how to get out of a crippling budget deficit. In 1993 it cut spending by a fifth and within four years produced a budget surplus.

Lib Dem deputy to create benefit reform plan

13/08/2010

The deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats is drawing up alternatives to the government’s plans to reform housing benefit because of his concern about their impact in London.

Plan for investors to ‘buy’ landlords

13/08/2010

Housing associations could be sold to pension funds or to life insurance companies to raise finance for the provision of affordable homes, a report has suggested.

The Canadian way

13/08/2010

Canada cut its way to an impressive economic recovery in the 1990s which David Cameron hopes to emulate. But the UK overlooks the country’s subsequent housing crisis at its peril. Nick Duxbury reports.

We need change...

13/08/2010

The concept of a council house for life is no longer tenable; those who can afford to leave social housing should make way for those who can’t

Council loses legal battle against housing association

12/08/2010

A council has lost a legal battle with a housing association over who is liable for paying a £2.4m pension fund deficit.

Residents to move from Southwark block

12/08/2010

Councillors have decided tenants and leaseholders in a Southwark tower block must be moved immediately.

Hammersmith and Fulham plans to close ALMO

11/08/2010

Hammersmith and Fulham council has announced plans to take its arm’s-length management organisation back in-house.

Advisory committee launches housing benefit inquiry

11/08/2010

The social security advisory committee has launched an inquiry into the government’s proposed changes to housing benefit.

Scottish construction firms forced into liquidation

11/08/2010

The number of Scottish construction firms forced into liquidation has more than trebled in the last year, according to figures from the Office of National Statistics.

Government launches benefit fraud crackdown

10/08/2010

The government will draft in credit ratings agencies to hunt down benefit frauds, the prime minister announced today.

Morgan Sindall profits decrease

10/08/2010

Morgan Sindall has reported pre-tax profits of £23.1m for the six months to 30 June.

Put cash into empty homes, say BPF

09/08/2010

The government should divert grants for new build into bringing thousands of empty homes back into use as social housing, an umbrella-group has demanded.

Climate change

06/08/2010

Does the prospect of a grant free world mean doom or opportunity for developing housing associations asks corporate finance lawyer Pete Naylor.

Great impact

06/08/2010

For me, the Chartered Institute of Housing’s Housing Pact is an important document for two reasons.

Halifax reports house price rise

04/08/2010

Halifax has reported house prices rose 0.6 per cent in July, putting the average value of a UK home at £167,425.

Taylor Wimpey records first half profit

03/08/2010

Taylor Wimpey made a small profit in the first six months of 2010, after recording a massive loss in the same period last year.

HCA delivers 120,000 homes to hit targets

30/07/2010

The Homes and Communities Agency hit all its targets last year, spending £5.2 billion in the process.

How prepared are you?

30/07/2010

New research shows that early planning by executives is crucial to surviving financial turmoil in good shape. Jonathan Magee offers advice on three different scenarios

Stretching the pennies

30/07/2010

As the sector awaits the falling axe, Inside Housing convened a round table debate to discuss how leaders are getting to grips with efficiency savings. Lydia Stockdale reports. Photography by Simon Brandon.

Lender reports fall in house prices

29/07/2010

House price inflation is easing with prices slipping 0.5 per cent in July, according to Nationwide.

LGA chair says councils can save £100bn

28/07/2010

The chair of the Local Government Association has said councils can deliver savings of £100 billion over five years.

Housing associations take up Triodos loans

26/07/2010

Ethical bank Triodos increased its lending to housing associations by 12.2 per cent in the first six months of 2010, it has reported.

Affordable homes pact

23/07/2010

Housing providers have pledged to find ways of improving the efficiency of affordable housing delivery in a pact drawn up by the Chartered Institute of Housing.

Money matters

23/07/2010

The submission to the comprehensive spending review from the leading bodies in the social housing sector marks the start of some tough negotiations.

Warwick awards £1.2m adaptation contract

21/07/2010

Lovell has won a £1.2 million, four-year contract to carry out disability adaptation work across Warwick council’s housing stock.

Keenly priced bond nets £200m for Hyde

19/07/2010

Hyde Group has raised £200 million in a deal that demonstrates the growing availability of cheap bond finance within the sector.

Coming in to land

16/07/2010

As the £1.67 billion Supporting People programme absorbs the first round of spending cuts, can it continue to provide a soft landing for vulnerable households? Nick Duxbury analyses the results of an exclusive survey to find out.

HAs in bid to receive the same VAT relief as councils

16/07/2010

Some housing associations are pushing the government to give them the same perks as local authorities when it comes to reclaiming Value Added Tax.

Landlords hit by SP ring fence removal

16/07/2010

More than a third of supported housing providers have experienced a significant reduction in their budget since the removal of the ring fence from supporting people funding.

VAT hike will cost associations £125m

16/07/2010

Housing associations will cut building programmes to minimise the impact of the planned Value Added Tax hike, which will add up to £3.5 million to their annual operating costs.

Barratt makes £85m as completions fall

14/07/2010

Barratt Developments expects to make an £85 million profit this year despite a 14 per cent decrease in the number of completions.

Economic fears hit buyer enquiries

13/07/2010

The number of people enquiring about buying a home has fallen for only the second time since October 2008, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

Kier sees cash balance double

12/07/2010

Kier Group has reported a record net cash balance of £170 million for the year to 30 June, almost double the figure for the same period the previous year.

A great deal to be done

09/07/2010

The seemingly interminable process of dismantling the reviled English council housing finance system reached a significant milestone this week as the consultation closed on the previous government’s proposals to reform the housing revenue account.

East Lothian lends landlord £25 million

09/07/2010

The Scottish Government has given permission for a housing association to access up to £25 million borrowed by a council from the Treasury.

Future of eco-towns in doubt as funding is halved

09/07/2010

The government has halved the funding available for eco-towns, Inside Housing has learnt.

Look to the future

09/07/2010

Last summer Neil Hadden took the hot seat at crisis-ridden Genesis Housing Group. Here, Martin Hilditch talks to the headstrong chief executive about how he is leaving the past firmly behind.

Notting Hill issues £180 million bond

09/07/2010

Notting Hill Housing Trust has raised £180 million in the lowest priced bond issue by a housing association for more than five years.

Connaught chief quits after profit warning

08/07/2010

The chief executive of troubled contractor Connaught has stepped down with immediate effect.

Lists show projects threatened by HCA cuts

07/07/2010

The Homes and Communities Agency has published full details of the schemes affected by the cuts to its budget.

HCA sets priorities after £450m cut

07/07/2010

The Homes and Communities Agency has set out its priorities for investment after suffering £450 million of cuts to its budget.

CLG cuts £220m to fill funding ‘black hole’

05/07/2010

The Communities and Local Government department is to cut previously agreed spending commitments by £220 million.

Social housing firm buys services business

05/07/2010

Morgan Sindall has acquired maintenance services contractor Powerminster Gleeson Services in a deal worth £6.61 million.

Brace yourself

02/07/2010

The cuts announced in last week’s emergency Budget are just the beginning

Cuts to fund eco-bank

02/07/2010

The government should scrap a number of energy and climate change quangos to fund a new green investment bank, a new report has argued.

Is the money in the bag?

02/07/2010

At what point does HCA grant approval become legally binding? Naomi Goode explains

Politicians ‘pushed’ PFI regardless of value

02/07/2010

Politicians were ‘hell-bent’ on pushing forward private finance initiatives, regardless of value for money, a council officer who supervised one project has stated.

Taylor Wimpey fears social housing cuts

30/06/2010

Taylor Wimpey has reported it has a strong order book but is concerned about the impact of potential social housing grant reductions on the construction of new housing.

Auction sales raise £15.2 million

28/06/2010

Councils and housing associations sold a total of 52 properties for a combined £15.2 million at auction in May.

Don’t wait and see

28/06/2010

Rather than cutting back, local authorities and housing associations need to get busy and get creative if they are going be anywhere near hitting their targets for new affordable homes.

Treasury covers £140m of housing pledge

25/06/2010

The Treasury will honour some of the spending commitments made in Labour’s housing pledge, even though the funding was never allocated.

CLG budget faces 25 per cent drop

25/06/2010

Housing providers fear that the sector could bear the brunt of £61 billion worth of spending cuts to government departments by 2014/15.

Landlords to raise £1 billion fund

25/06/2010

A2Dominion is planning to launch six funds worth a total of around £1 billion to invest in building up to 6,000 private rented sector homes.

Private property

25/06/2010

The news that A2Dominion and Great Places Housing Group are bidding to be the first to make the dream of institutional funds being used to build private rented sector housing is to be applauded.

VAT rise to hit associations hard

25/06/2010

The housing association sector will see its tax bill rise by millions of pounds following an increase in VAT announced in Tuesday’s emergency Budget.

Where is housing’s white knight?

25/06/2010

As social landlords struggle to house the growing number of people who cannot afford to buy their own home - and with state coffers all but empty - they are increasingly looking to the private rented sector to ride to their rescue. Nick Duxbury investigates why it is taking so long.

Councils must make unpopular choices

24/06/2010

Council leaders will have to show strong leadership by taking unpopular decisions to deliver housing, the chief executive of the Homes and Communities Agency has said.

Dormant bank accounts could fund localism plans

23/06/2010

Money from dormant bank accounts could be used to fund the government’s ‘big society’ plans, the Harrogate conference heard this morning.

Capital spending cuts put on hold

22/06/2010

The construction sector has welcomed a government commitment to not make further capital spending cuts in this Budget period.

Radical change needed to cope with spending cuts

22/06/2010

The Chartered Institute of Housing president has called for a radical rethink of the housing system to prevent social renters from being hit hardest by government spending cuts.

Regeneration schemes offer poor returns

21/06/2010

Returns from regeneration property were significantly lower than for all property in 2009, according to an index by market information company IPD.

Funding cuts would boost waiting lists

21/06/2010

The National Housing Federation has warned 354,000 people will be added to housing waiting lists by government spending cuts.

Housing professionals fear funding cuts

21/06/2010

More than a third of housing professionals fear the government’s programme of cuts will threaten their ability to provide affordable homes.

Councils: give us reform guarantee

18/06/2010

Councils have asked the government to publicly state the circumstances under which any settlement that would see them leave the current subsidy system could be changed at a later date.

Housing sector braces itself for ‘years of pain’

18/06/2010

One in five senior housing professionals thinks next week’s emergency Budget heralds years of pain that will see the sector’s budget slashed by more than 30 per cent.

Tough times

18/06/2010

While the likely demise of the Tenant Services Authority will set tongues wagging at next week’s annual Chartered Institute of Housing conference and exhibition in Harrogate, the real question is: how bad will the emergency Budget be for housing?

The road ahead

16/06/2010

Justin Sumner offers his monthly update on how wider economic issues could affect housing in the UK.

Housing to suffer from £160m PFI cut

15/06/2010

Housing schemes will bear the brunt of £160 million of cuts to the Communities and Local Government department’s private finance initiative budget.

Fed warns cuts could hit most vulnerable

11/06/2010

The National Housing Federation has warned government cuts announced yesterday could have a dire effect on vulnerable people.

HCA mothballs £214 million of kick-start schemes ahead of Budget

11/06/2010

The chief executive of the Homes and Communities Agency has admitted that the future of all uncommitted funding for its kick-start scheme is under threat.

Shapps: the coffers are empty

11/06/2010

Housing minister Grant Shapps has claimed money for affordable housing has run out and a ‘myriad’ of schemes will face the axe.

CLG decides where the axe will fall

10/06/2010

The government has set out details of how cuts to housing and regeneration programmes will be made and which ones will bear the brunt of the pain.

Coalition to stick with HRA reform schedule

07/06/2010

The coalition government will continue with the planned timetable for changes to the housing revenue account subsidy system set out by the previous administration.

Notting hill judged low credit risk

07/06/2010

Notting Hill Housing Group has been judged a low credit risk, giving it the potential to finance any expansion plans.

Opportunistic cuts hide long-term plans

07/06/2010

Housing professionals should draw no conclusions about future housing policy or investment from the coalition government’s spending cuts, the head of the National Housing Federation has said.

£285m mortgage funding gap looms

04/06/2010

The Council for Mortgage Lenders is to lobby the government in a bid to ensure the £285 million mortgage rescue scheme is not axed.

Council houses under threat

04/06/2010

Local authorities fear the first significant council house building programme for more than a decade is under threat from funding cuts.

Shapps to be focal speaker at Harrogate

04/06/2010

Housing minister Grant Shapps is to give a keynote speech at this year’s Chartered Institute of Housing conference and exhibition in Harrogate.

Impairment charges down from last year

03/06/2010

More than 60 housing associations expect to make impairment charges of over £113m in their 2010 accounts, a new report from the regulator has said.

Aldwyck and Broadland housing associations could face financial trouble

02/06/2010

Two housing associations have slipped from meeting the Tenant Services Authority’s finance performance standards to being ‘vulnerable to deterioration’.

Government guns for CEOs' pay

02/06/2010

The Government has launched a broadside on highly paid housing association chief executives.

London councils to get HCA funding

01/06/2010

London councils would be given a share of the Homes and Communities Agency’s budget in plans being drawn up by Boris Johnson and the Government.

General election slowed housing market

01/06/2010

Uncertainty caused by the general election caused a slowdown in the housing market in May, according to the latest figures.

Executive told to become an umbrella body

28/05/2010

The Northern Ireland Housing Executive should split its landlord and funding functions, a commission into the future of the sector has recommended.

Healey lists key tests for new government

28/05/2010

Former housing minister John Healey has outlined the key points he feels the new government must address.

The big freeze

28/05/2010

Figures from the National House Building Council this week show that housing starts across the UK in the first three months of this year are almost double those for the same period in 2009.

Investment trust to fund building in Wales

27/05/2010

The Welsh government has given an £178,000 grant to Community Housing Cymru to develop an investment trust for house building.

Government cuts 'mixed bag' for housing sector

25/05/2010

Government plans to save £6.2 billion but invest £170 million of the proceeds in social housing have been met with a cautious welcome by housing representatives.

CLG cuts dwarf £170m investment

24/05/2010

The government is slashing the budget of the Communities and Local Government department but putting an extra £170 million into social housing.

Durkan lands £11.5m contract

24/05/2010

Construction firm Durkan has been awarded an £11.5 million housing association contract to build 94 homes in Surrey.

Cabinet’s missing minister

21/05/2010

Housing minister Grant Shapps will not attend cabinet meetings unlike his four Labour predecessors. Does it matter and what does it say about the importance of housing within the new coalition government? Chloë Stothart finds out

Getting in the big guns

21/05/2010

The government is preparing to give building contracts to private landlords, but how well will they do?

NHF: subsidiaries could help raise development cash

21/05/2010

Housing associations should consider issuing shares through unregulated subsidiary companies to raise funds, according to a radical new report from the National Housing Federation.

Simply the best

21/05/2010

They came, they saw - and they inspired.

Housing finance reform among coalition priorities

20/05/2010

The coalition government has set out its housing priorities including a review of the housing revenue account subsidy system.

Sanctuary secures strong credit rating

19/05/2010

One of the largest housing associations in the country has had its Aa2 credit rating confirmed.

Kier reports healthy start to 2010

17/05/2010

Construction and maintenance group Kier has reported a strong start to the year.

House price rise nears double figures

17/05/2010

House prices have risen nearly 10 per cent in the last year, according to government figures.

Councils face HRA reform debt charge

14/05/2010

Several councils could lose hundreds of thousands of pounds as an unintended consequence of restructuring their debt under the planned reform of the housing subsidy system.

Thousands ripe for intermediate rent

14/05/2010

Thousands of tenants allocated general needs housing last year could have moved into intermediate tenures, a new report has claimed.

Struggling homeowners still need support

13/05/2010

The Council of Mortgage Lenders has warned the Government against complacency as the number of repossessions goes down.

Barratt predicts return to profit

12/05/2010

House builder Barratt Developments has said it expects to return to profit in the second half of its financial year, which runs to 30 June.

Mears racks up £500m of contract wins

11/05/2010

Mears has reported strong trading in the first quarter with its highest ever number of new social housing contracts.

Surveyors expect house price rise

11/05/2010

More surveyors reported a rise in house prices in April than in previous months, according to a survey.

Halifax finds house prices are flat

10/05/2010

House prices remained almost unchanged in April, according to the Halifax.

Labour offers DUP funding sweetener

07/05/2010

The Labour party has offered to protect Westminster funding for Northern Ireland as part of deal with the Democratic Unionist Party.

Election result leaves housing in limbo

07/05/2010

The hung parliament following the election has brought further uncertainty to the housing sector, commentators have warned.

Labour’s legacy

07/05/2010

In 1997 we were promised that things could only get better for social housing. So after 13 years in power - and nine housing ministers - did Labour deliver? Keith Cooper looks back on a time of both great achievement and missed opportunity

Pension fund to invest in housing

07/05/2010

Bank says fund could generate up to £2 billion for housing associations

Building figures suggest recovering market

05/05/2010

Registrations to build new homes in the first quarter of the year were up 72 per cent on last year, according to figures published by the National House Building Council.

Land Registry bucks price rise trend

30/04/2010

The Land Registry has recorded a 0.6 per cent fall in house prices for March, in contrast to the other major indices.

A clear future for debt

30/04/2010

Borrowing costs look set to rise, no matter which party wins the election.

Councils back new finance reforms

30/04/2010

The majority of senior council staff expect to back the government’s proposals for reform of the housing finance system, a new survey has found.

House Proud hat trick

30/04/2010

Inside Housing and the Chartered Institute of Housing’s House Proud campaign has achieved its three aims to become a hot election issue. Lydia Stockdale looks back at the campaign and explains why the fight must go on

Time to get even

30/04/2010

The worlds of housing and finance must work together to tackle the wealth gap between social tenants and homeowners

Repairs firm lands £300m contract

26/04/2010

Maintenance and repairs company Mears is to land its biggest ever contract with a £300 million housing association deal.

Market slows ahead of election

26/04/2010

The number of homes on the market continues to outstrip the number sold as buyers hold off purchasing until after the election.

Mears set for £170m Lambeth deal 

23/04/2010

Repairs and maintenance company Mears is set to win a £170 million contract from the London borough of Lambeth.

Inviting caution

23/04/2010

Councils across England have welcomed the government’s proposed housing revenue account reforms but, says Robin Tebbutt, there are still several sticking points for them to consider before they sign up

Lib Dems defend new build VAT plan

23/04/2010

The Liberal Democrats have denied claims that tax reforms that would add a minimum of 5 per cent VAT to the cost of new housing would push up house prices.

Play your cards right

23/04/2010

In times of financial hardship, landlords need to get their priorities straight

Lib Dem role in government could boost housing

21/04/2010

A hung Parliament could be good for housing because the Liberal Democrats would be given responsibility for the sector, the head of the CIH has claimed.

Scots give £31m to affordable housing

20/04/2010

Affordable housing in Scotland has been given the biggest chunk of an extra £76 million awarded to the country after the Budget.

Housing starts rise as prices strengthen

19/04/2010

The value of UK housing projects starting work in the first quarter of 2010 rose 37 per cent compared with last year.

Gateshead aims to branch out

16/04/2010