Chelmer Housing Partnership has become one of the first housing associations to enlist a private estate agency as an adviser.
The registered social landlord has awarded a three-year contract, worth £3m, to Savills to help it take advantage of opportunities in the private housing market. Last month, the Housing Corporation announced plans to set aside £200m for RSLs to spend on private housing in a bid to stimulate the sector.
Essex-based Chelmer, which wants to expand its portfolio from 7,000 to 10,000 homes over the next three years, said that Savills would advise it on buying development land to build affordable homes and on buying completed homes from private developers.
Chelmer’s business director, David Cotterill, said the housing association needed a “more formal and far-reaching vehicle to access new opportunities”.
Savills said it was in talks with other housing associations about similar contracts.
Iain Baldwin, director of Allsop Residential Investment Management, said: “This is a reflection of where the RSLs are at the moment. There’s huge demand for private rented accommodation and they are in as good a position as anyone to provide it.
“What RSLs do, and what they know, is the ownership and management of social housing – but, when they embark into private market housing, what’s demanded is a different approach to management.”
