Win for housing associations
An extra £1.4bn is to be made available through capital grants to deliver 40,000 affordable homes by 2021. Alongside this, restrictions will be relaxed on grant funding so providers can deliver a mixture of tenures for affordable rent and low-cost ownership.
£3.2bn for London
In a major step towards further devolution of government powers, £3.2bn in funding was granted to London mayor Sadiq Khan and the Greater London Authority for the provision of affordable housing, alongside relaxations of what the mayor could spend it on. “The record-breaking affordable housing settlement means we can get on with the hard slog of building new genuinely affordable homes,” said Khan.
Letting fees banned
Estate agents saw their share prices tumble in early trading before the Autumn Statement was announced owing to indications that letting agency administrative fees for tenants would be banned. Hammond confirmed this in the statement.
Devolution continuity
Scotland, Wales and English metropolitan regions will continue to see devolved powers from government to allow more control over spending, taxation and investment. A Northern Powerhouse strategy has been published, with an additional £556m committed for Northern local enterprise partnerships. An East Midlands Engine report will follow soon.
Catch up online
For more detail and analysis of all the property-related initiatives announced in the Autumn Statement, including podcast interviews with leading industry figures, visit editorial.property.rbi.web.ds/news/autumnstatement16
