South-eastern housebuilding boom will allow association 50% growth in three years
Moat Housing Group has unveiled an ambitious £315m plan to grow by almost 50% over the next three years.

It aims to take advantage of the South-eastern housebuilding boom unleashed by the government on Wednesday.

The Kent-based association presently has a portfolio of 11,500 properties, mainly shared-home ownership and general needs housing. It plans to increase this to 17,000 by 2006 by:

  • ensuring its involvement in three of the Communities Plan's four growth areas: Ashford in Kent, Milton Keynes and the Thames Gateway
  • expanding the use of cross-subsidised housing
  • looking at the housing private finance initiative.

Moat chief executive John Barker said the rationale behind the new corporate plan – Moat's first since 1999 – was that there was an "acute housing need in the South-east".

The expansion will be funded by an existing £60m loan facility with a variety of lenders and an additional facility of up to £50m, which Barker hopes to negotiate in 18 months' time.

Moat expects an extra £120m to come through revenue from its shared home ownership programme, plus another £90m in the form of social housing grant.

We aim to become the leading housing association working in the South-east

John Barker, chief executive, Moat Housing Group

Barker said an increase in size would help make the delivery of services more effective and allow Moat to become the "leading housing association working in the South-east".

Moat has identified a number of South-east local authorities that it wants to work with, including Greenwich, Kingston and Kent.

Barker admitted to concerns over spiralling construction costs – especially caused by the lack of skilled site-workers – but said he expected asset values to continue to increase and offset rising costs.

He added that it was likely that off-site manufacturing techniques would play some part in the delivery of the extra 5500 homes, but declined to say to what extent he planned to use them.

Questioned about potential hold-ups in the notoriously slow planning system, Barker said: "The fact that prime minister Tony Blair is to chair the cabinet committee on the Thames Gateway growth area will mean heads will be knocked together to ensure delivery – including the planning system."

Source

Housing Today