Cambridgeshire Mayor urges more developers to come on board with £100K Home housing project

Cambridgeshire's mayor is hoping more developers will work with his combined authority to build more £100K Homes across the county including in Fenland.

Mayor James Palmer is encouraging developers to work with the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority to build the homes after receiving 228 applications for the eight £100,000 that have recently been built in Fordham

Of the 228 applications 147 had the necessary local connections to the village to make them suitable for the homes - that's five per cent of Fordham's 2,712 population.

There are more £100K Homes being built in Ely, Great Abington, and Cambridge, expected in the New Year, but now Mayor Palmer calling forhousing developers across the region to get in touch about building £100K Homes in their patch as demand is expected to continue to far outstrip supply.

For housing developers, getting people on the housing ladder at the bottom end will help create future demand further up the chain.

They can also fulfil their affordable housing obligations without the involvement of third parties and build homes to the same standard as private developments.

Mayor Palmer said: “The £100k Home is the kind of innovative, transformational project that I want to promote as Mayor. I knew that there was a desperate need for a product like the £100k Home to help give local working people a first step on the housing ladder, and the numbers demonstrate that very clearly.

"The Fordham 100K homes could have been filled nearly 20 times over, such is the demand for those who live or work in the village. It is clear people want these homes, so we have to deliver for them.

"I am calling upon housing developers across the region to step forward and work with us to deliver more £100K Homes that are so desperately needed. Get in touch and we will work with you on delivering affordable homes now, that will create a future pipeline of buyers for your properties.”

£100K Homes are new-build, 100 per cent owned one-bedroom properties which offer the dual benefit of both an affordable deposit and affordable mortgage payments.

They are aimed at giving people who live or work in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough a genuinely affordable step on the housing ladder, while enabling them to live close to where they work.

Rather than their monthly payment disappearing into the bank account of their landlord, those who buy a £100k Home own it outright and build their equity as they repay their mortgage. As the monthly mortgage payment is expected to be lower than the equivalent private rent amount, £100k Homeowners also have the chance to save more each month; savings that can go towards the deposit on their next homes, in the open market.

£100K Homes are made available at a discount to their full market value through a legal covenant which stays with the property. The next purchaser would also be found through the £100K Home scheme, and they would also benefit from the same percentage discount on the open market value of the property the initial buyer received.

£100K Homes are part of Mayor Palmer’s response to the housing crisis which is seeing many people locked out of the property market and forced to pay expensive private rents or are stuck living at home with parents to save costs.

The £100K Homes website (www.100khomes.co.uk) was launched earlier this year, allowing people to find out more and register their interest in buying homes when they become available.

If you are a housing developer and would like to know more about the programme, please get in touch at: 100khomes@cambridgeshirepeterborough-ca.gov.uk