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Social landlords should buy from ‘over-stretched’ private landlords, says Affordable Housing Commission
Social landlords should be supported to buy up homes from “overstretched” private landlords, the Affordable Housing Commission (AHC) has said.
In an open letter published to coincide with Digital Housing Week, Lord Richard Best, chair of the AHC, called for more investment in social housing to stimulate the economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Housing associations and councils should be helped to build more, acquire unsold new builds and “buy from over-stretched buy-to-let landlords exiting the market”, the former National Housing Federation (NHF) chief executive wrote.
The National Residential Landlords Association has claimed that many private landlords will be forced to leave the market in the face of a five-month eviction ban imposed to protect renters during the coronavirus crisis.
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Lord Best’s letter, co-signed by AHC commissioners including Kate Henderson, chief executive of the NHF, and Gavin Smart, chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Housing, said: “Government is willing to support new homebuyers.
“But our commission calls also for a massive boost for social housing, for those – like the essential workers we have come to admire so much – who cannot afford homeownership even with a discount.”
It added: “We must turn the coronavirus tragedy into a positive for the growing number of struggling renters.
“With a mini Budget expected next month, it’s time for a housing-led recovery plan, with social housing at its heart.”
The Affordable Housing Commission was set up by thinktank The Smith Institute to make recommendations aimed at tackling the UK’s housing affordability crisis.
