Pent Up Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 Finally Shappsy does something worthwhile. The Government has unveiled a "build now, pay later" scheme to boost the struggling housebuilding industry.The deal, to be announced by housing minister Grant Shapps, is designed to help businesses overcome cashflow problems and will allow developers to delay paying for the land they buy until after the homes are completed. It comes after housebuilding slumped to its lowest levels for any peacetime year since 1924. An estimated 40% of land ready for development - as much as 7,500 hectares - is currently "sitting idle" in public sector land banks. If made available, the land could be used for the construction of up to 60,000 homes. Launching the new scheme, Mr Shapps is expected to blame "draconian top-down targets" for bringing housebuilding "to its knees" and will claim "radical reform" is needed to kickstart the industry. The first areas available under "build now, pay later" will include sites in the south-east and Midlands. Planning consent is in place for a 372-home development at Spencer's Park in Hemel Hempsted and a former colliery site in Rushcliffe in Nottinghamshire has been made available, with plans fro 470 new homes. Lightmore Village in Telford and a former hospital at Park Prewett in Basingstoke will also benefit from the scheme. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martingale Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 An estimated 40% of land ready for development - as much as 7,500 hectares - is currently "sitting idle" in public sector land banks. Does anyone know what is meant by 'public sector land banks'? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athom Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 (edited) Does anyone know what is meant by 'public sector land banks'? From BBC interview - MOD land (space for 20,000 homes), NHS land and various government departments who have agreed to "pitch in with this". Six places found so far, and he could remember 3 of them, London, Nottingham and Northampton He STILL thinks mortgage availability is the main problem as far as affordability goes. The twit Edited March 31, 2011 by athom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Si1 Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 Does anyone know what is meant by 'public sector land banks'? AFAIK part of the profligacy of the labour years was public sector organisations, especially councils, needlessly buying up and hoarding land sounds crazy, about as crazy as employees of the same organisations doing exactly the same in the name of speculation Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SarahBell Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 If they were going to be building cheap rent properties then I'd applaud. but it won't be. It'll be more unaffordable housing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athom Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 If they were going to be building cheap rent properties then I'd applaud. but it won't be. It'll be more unaffordable housing. don't forget you only need 5% deposit for a new build and the tax payer will cough up 20% making crazy prices affordable by all Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCountOfNowhere Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 don't forget you only need 5% deposit for a new build and the tax payer will cough up 20% making crazy prices affordable by all Affordable to 10000...they same 10000 that really cant afford anything....great move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Loo Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 Does anyone know what is meant by 'public sector land banks'? school playing fields, hospital car parks, your local park...that sort of thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinker Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 What is it with this scarcity of available land? Developers own loads of it (land banks), they stopped building because they could no longer get the ludicrous prices that the credit free-for-all allowed and perhaps the 'demand' wasn't actually there. Handing over publicly owned land to developers is yet more wealth transference from the poor (the public) to the wealthy and connected elite. A new, affordable price level needs to be reached and then, if necessary, incentives made for existing land banks to be developed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athom Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 Handing over publicly owned land to developers is yet more wealth transference from the poor (the public) to the wealthy and connected elite. Well the developers are supposed to pay for the land once the houses are sold. I would be interested to know the detail of this though and what happens if the developers go bust in the mean time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timak Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 As others have said this is simply a scheme whereby publicly held land is handed over to private interests at knocked down prices. If it were privately owned land being released into the planning system at knock down prices I'd fully support it. And why is it given to "developers" to build identikit housing? If those 400 plots were given to the public to bid on then more money would be raised. I'd buy one. I'd love to build my own homeand would stimulate the economy far more as local architects, builders and tradesmen would be used. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athom Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 As others have said this is simply a scheme whereby publicly held land is handed over to private interests at knocked down prices. If it were privately owned land being released into the planning system at knock down prices I'd fully support it. And why is it given to "developers" to build identikit housing? If those 400 plots were given to the public to bid on then more money would be raised. I'd buy one. I'd love to build my own homeand would stimulate the economy far more as local architects, builders and tradesmen would be used. what! Are you a commie or something? Wealth should be concentrated in the hands of the few, it's the Tesco's way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phead Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 (edited) Finally Shappsy does something worthwhile. ...a 372-home development at Spencer's Park in Hemel Hempsted Next door to a travellers site that is raided every second week, and within the blast radius for buncefield, I think I'll pass on that one. Edited March 31, 2011 by phead Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Milton Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 (edited) As others have said this is simply a scheme whereby publicly held land is handed over to private interests at knocked down prices. If it were privately owned land being released into the planning system at knock down prices I'd fully support it. And why is it given to "developers" to build identikit housing? If those 400 plots were given to the public to bid on then more money would be raised. I'd buy one. I'd love to build my own home and would stimulate the economy far more as local architects, builders and tradesmen would be used. Exactly. Its not mentioned, but I feel sure this will include vast residential and Commercial land banks owned by Lloyds. The government should set up a Development Trust for First Time Buyer's. Allowing just One FTB to buy just one plot of land, from Lloyds Land bank, for a vastly reduced rate, [60% off current land values.] With the caveat that each FTB must take a mortgage from Lloyds, to build a house on their plot. The Trust could include a clause which states that FTB'er's cannot sell the land/house for ten years. And then only back to the Development Trust for a fair market value. Development Trust Land: £200k House: £50k Present Open Market Value: £250k **FTB pays a 60% reduction on the land value: Borrows £130k from Lloyds. [£80k for land £50k for house.] It's a simple enough concept. Sell FTB land cheaply. [but do not allow FTB to sell it onto anyone else for ten years.] It would spread the pain of deficit reduction more equally, between those who own property and those who do not, whilst still allowing the government to gradually let the air out of the housing bubble. [House Prices were fraudulently manipulated to rise threefold over ten years] [Everyone already knows that for houses to become affordable once again, a 50% + crash, must occur, but it seems they intend to draw it out over ten years. Stochastically speaking, the ten year cycle seems likely.] It would bring equality back to the housing market. First Time Buyers would not have to spend the next ten years working for nothing. No Capital. Housebuilding Industry would love it. Lloyds cannot sell their land anyway. [And this solution would be much 'fairer' and preferable to the millions of Lloyds shareholders, than governments plans to give away Lloyds shares for free indiscriminantly.] In one fell swoop the Coalition would win 2 million plus FTB votes. And it would not affect homeowners as much as an outright crash would. There are historical precedents for states giving away land, or selling it cheaply, to their citizens, for different reasons, in a number of countries, throughout history. THATS RADICAL REFORM SHAPPS YOU TWIT. ALL YOU ARE DOING IS REARRANGING THE DECKCHAIRS. This is one of a hundred solutions the government could implement. The truth is that they could help FTB if they wanted to. And If they choose not to help us. Thats 2-3 million FTB votes that The 'LibConLabour' corporate-ocratic government should lose. Dont vote for any of them in 2015 Edited March 31, 2011 by Dan1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saberu Posted April 1, 2011 Share Posted April 1, 2011 Anything but let land prices fall.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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