Help to build
On 24 April 2021 the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG) announced a new £150 million ‘Help to Build’ scheme to make it easier and more affordable for people to build their own homes.
The scheme will provide an equity loan on the completed home, similar to the Help to Buy scheme, so that self and custom home building can become a realistic option to get onto the housing ladder through lower deposit mortgages.
The government estimates that self build and custom build could deliver 30-40,000 new homes a year. A self and custom build action plan has been published, which sets out government measures to support the sector. This includes the next steps in the review of the Right to Build legislation, to assess whether further reforms are needed and confirmation of further funding for the Right to Build Task Force which will help local authorities, community groups and other organisations help deliver self and custom build housing projects across the UK.
The government also announced £2.1 million in funding to help communities have a greater say in how their local area is developed. The fund will boost neighbourhood planning by giving additional support to local authorities in under-represented areas. A further £330,000 is also available to councils wishing to pilot this approach to neighbourhood planning.
Housing Secretary Rt Hon Robert Jenrick MP said: Building your own home shouldn’t be the preserve of a small number of people, but a mainstream, realistic and affordable option for people across the country. That’s why we are making it easier and more affordable – backed by over £150 million new funding from the government. The scheme we have launched today will help the thousands of people who’d like to build their own home but who’ve not yet considered it or previously ruled it out. Our plans will help get more people on to the housing ladder, ensure homes suit people’s needs like home working or caring for relatives, whilst providing an important boost to small builders and businesses too.”
Andrew Baddeley-Chappell, CEO, National Custom and Self Build Association said: “The Help to Build scheme is an important step towards greater customer choice for those with ambition, sound plans and smaller deposits. Custom and self build is about the homeowner having control over the design and specification of their project – enabling them to create the home they want, rather than the one someone else believes they would like. This scheme is all about delivering more and better homes, that more people aspire to live in and that communities are happier to see built.”
Ref https://www.gov.uk/government/news/over-150-million-funding-to-kickstart-self-building-revolution
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