Affordable Housing: Construction
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that build to let developments contribute to local affordable housing quotas.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook
The government is committed to strengthening the system of developer contributions to ensure new developments provide necessary affordable homes and infrastructure.
As part of this commitment, we are reviewing the planning practice guidance PPG on viability. That guidance currently recognises that the economics of Build to Rent (BtR) schemes differ from build for sale as they depend on a long-term income stream. As such, for build to rent it is expected that the normal form of affordable housing provision will be affordable private rent.
Where plan makers wish to set affordable private rent proportions or discount levels at a level differing from national planning policy and guidance, this can be reviewed through a viability assessment at the plan-making stage. This approach ensures that local planning authorities continue to maximise contributions towards affordable housing and community infrastructure, while supporting the delivery of viable developments.
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