Agenda 2019

http://www.theguardian.com/money/2015/oct/16/average-monthly-rent-hits-record-high-of-816-highlighting-housing-shortage Average monthly rent hits record high of £816     Social housing should be built to suit a range of incomes   A report which underlines the simple economic reality that, where there is a shortage of a commodity, in this case rented accommodation specifically, but emphasised by a housing shortage generally,  the price level of the available "stock" will increase. We have seen the level of rents increase significantly over recent years and with some regional variations, has increased in the past 12 months alone, by between 6.3% and 8.5% with a fall in Wales and the North of England.   Higher rents combined with the growth in property values mean that landlords in England and Wales have seen returns of 9.4% over the past year. Landlords have plenty to be happy about, suggested Adrian Gill, director of Your Move and Reeds Rains....

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/oct/07/pm-cameron-vows-scrap-rules-forcing-developers-build-affordable-homes-for-rent Cameron vows to scrap requirement to build affordable homes for rent   Cameron will encourage developers to increase the building of homes for first-time buyers. Cameron either by accident or more probably design, conveniently ignores hundreds of thousands of people in this country who will never be able to afford to buy either low cost first time buyer homes or "affordable" homes. This country has a housing crisis created by successive governments, where people are unable to buy or cannot afford to rent. Tinkering at the margin with the vague prospect of owning a home at sometime in the future, is a not very well disguised bribe to attract votes, which has been the way of things for decades and has failed miserably. What this country desperately needs is a housing programme to build at least 800,000 new homes of which a minimum of 75% ...

  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/constructionandproperty/11565524/Housebuilders-hit-by-Ed-Milibands-rent-control-plans.html Labour's housing plans wipe nearly £200m off value of UK home builders Modest plans wipe £200 million off value of Britain's house builders. How strange it is that a political party's plans to assist potential house buyers and to offer some rent controls as relief to those families renting their homes should cause such alarm and despondency among Britain's house building companies as almost £200 million is wiped off the value of their companies. It seems that the possibility of some controls in the housing sector, no matter how modest, can cause such alarm in "the markets" as they contemplate some reductions in their already inflated "margins". What is not strange however, is the fact that a rabid right wing rag such as "The Telegraph" should place such great emphasis on the drop in sha...

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/apr/27/labour-pledge-stamp-duty-house-purchases-first-time-buyers Labour pledges to abolish stamp duty on house purchases for first-time buyers Labour to cut stamp duty on homes under £300k for first time buyers Help for "first time buyers" and curbs on rent increases. Two measures seeking to attract votes but will do nothing to resolve the problem. For Miliband and all of the other politicians paying lip service to the housing crisis with half baked useless cliches, the message is a simple one. Stop fiddling with the margins and address the fundamental issue. We desperately need more housing in all sectors, but especially in the rented sector be it private or social. The parties sho uld commit to (and deliver) 300,000 new homes with at least 80% for rented accommodation built for local authorities or housing associations. The "right to buy" nonsense should be scrapped and the "cap" on r...