As exclusively revealed in this magazine, Salford’s Homeswap initiative aims to help owners whose homes have plummeted in value from £30,000 to as little as £5,000 (Housing Today, 29 November).
Under the scheme, the first of its kind in the UK, owners in the 3,500-home Seedley and Langworthy areas will be helped to move to better homes nearby. They will take their existing mortgage with them.
The council will buy both the old and the new home using Single Regeneration Budget money, and take a stake in the new one equal to the difference in values.
Owners who stay for five years would owe the council nothing.
The new homes will be refurbished to high standards, including central heating, double glazing, insulation and burglar alarms.
The scheme should help to free up housing for clearance, which can be held up for years if owners are unable or unwilling to move. If regeneration of the area is successful the value of the new homes should rise, reducing owners’ negative equity.
The council has worked closely with the Local Government Association and high street lenders to get the scheme off the ground. It hopes the model could be used in areas across the north and midlands suffering low demand in the private sector.
The idea has gained momentum since the Ritchie report on disturbances in Oldham recommended that swaps be promoted to aid regeneration (Housing Today, 13 December).
Salford housing spokesperson councillor John Warmisham said: “We will be the first local authority to introduce a scheme of this kind. It demonstrates our concern to hold local communities together during regeneration.”
Source
Housing Today
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