The chief executive of Urban & Civic has pledged to halve the time it takes to get large-scale residential sites delivered, upon unveiling positive annual results today.
Nigel Hugill said today that U&C, which posted a 7.1% rise in net asset value per share over the past year, is looking to halve the traditional time it takes to get large sites delivered, under plans to become the go-to master developer, or “IBM” of large-scale residential.
The company currently has a pipeline of nearly 40,000 units and, after selling off commercial assets at Stansted and Feethams, has 80% of its debt held by the government, which has lent it £45m under the Home Building Fund through the Homes and Communities Agency.
Hugill said: “Nobody else has got six projects, all of which can be accelerated. It’s strengthened by the fact that the government’s lending us money. For most others, although they want to accelerate, it’s actually enabling development. We want to accelerate rather than enable.
Hugill said research had shown that for more than 2,000 units, the time from submitting the application to first delivery is almost seven years, and then the average pace of delivery is 160 per year thereafter.
“We’re on track for halving the first, and doubling the second,” he said. “Our master developer model is cutting the old assumptions for time between outline planning submission and first housing delivery. We are also on track to double historic rates of subsequent delivery.
“That combination is transformational for the politics just as much as the economics of large projects and gives local authorities the confidence to commit.”
This has meant a progression from the company’s first house sale in September 2016, to 52 housing completions last year and an estimated 315 in the current year, with 720 in the next.
Hugill said: “It’s not reliant on the HCA. We halved the delivery of the first scheme without their support. They don’t lend money until a site’s consented. The first part of the delivery – the planning process – does not relate to the HCA, but the second part – the build-out – absolutely has a role for the HCA.”
Hugill was not prepared to share the company’s eventual target number of units, but said: “We have exponential growth within the business and we have to deliver on what we’ve got, and then win new projects. I want to get to the situation where we’re the IBM of large sites.”
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