Friday, 25th September 2009 Top stories this weekRightmove house price index ......read more Matthew Taylor MP named new National Housing Federation chair.....read more New Deputy Chair for Construction Industry Training Board.....read more CBI forecast: Economic outlook brightens slightly but 2010 remains tough.....read more John Healey: Housing associations must raise their game in the downturn.....read more Quick LinksWales news Housing market news Industry news Economic news Government and political news Events Wales news Consultants sound Welsh rule warning New rules on design and access statements in Wales are slowing down planning and adding to pressure on councils, planners have warned. Design and access statements became mandatory in Wales on 1st June. But consultants have suggested that some authorities are being too rigid in their approach. Concerns have been raised over further complications after sustainability regulations for schemes of five or more homes were introduced on 1st September. The Planning Officers Society Wales (POSW) has asked the Welsh Assembly Government to clarify whether applications should be assessed against the new criteria before or after registration. Read more to top £37m to create a winning workforce in Wales A £37m initiative to help 18,000 people across West Wales and the Valleys become world class business leaders has been announced by the Welsh Assembly Government. The Enhancing Leadership and Management Skills in Wales programme, backed with almost £16m from the Convergence European Social Fund, will also work with over 5,000 businesses to develop motivated, competitive, and highly skilled individuals to drive the workforce and support a 21st century economy. Over the next five years the initiative will provide grants to meet up to 70% of costs to help employers fund their staff to develop their leadership and management skills, and will be accessible through the Workforce Development programme via the Assembly’s Flexible Support for Business (FS4B) service. Read more to top EU funding hits major target Wales is marking a major milestone as it reaches its target of investing 50% of European funding available to the region - almost £1bn - as part of a seven year drive to boost the Welsh economy and create jobs - Deputy First Minister, Ieuan Wyn Jones, has announced. The challenging target was set for the 2007-2013 Structural Funds programmes in response to the economic downturn, and with match funding will generate an investment of £1.8bn through 119 projects, helping nearly 29,000 Welsh businesses and providing employment and training opportunities for 280,000 individuals. Read more to top Welsh Assembly Government updates nature conservation planning advice The Welsh Assembly Government has published new planning guidance on how local planning authorities can allow for continued development while protecting the natural heritage of Wales. Technical Advice Notice 5 (TAN 5) gives revised guidance on the conservation of internationally and nationally designated sites and habitats. It also: Addresses the conservation of protected species and; Sets out the key principles of positive planning for nature conservation, including the relevant legal requirements and their impact within the land use planning system. The revised guidelines bring together advice on the various sources of legislation relevant to nature conservation topics which may be encountered by local planning authorities, both in preparing their development plans and in making decisions on individual developments. Environment, Sustainability and Housing Minister Jane Davidson said: “Considerable work has gone into revising this guidance to help local planning authorities and developers in conserving our environment, whilst at the same time allowing continued sustainable development that does not damage our precious natural environment. "Sustainable development is the key organising principle of the Welsh Assembly Government and we want to make sure development now does not compromise the quality of life of future generations in Wales. Creating the right planning guidelines plays a significant role in this.” Read more to top Housing market news Rightmove house price index The Rightmove house price index, released this week, reported that: The average asking price rose by 0.6% as autumn sellers raised price expectations, from £222,762 in August to £223,996 in September; There was the lowest stock level for 18 months with 10 properties coming off the market for every 8 coming on; Would-be sellers were deterred from trading up by dwindling property choice and high deposit requirements; Lenders were competing to cherry-pick the cash-rich which has driven the price increases in the more affluent South. Miles Shipside, Commercial Director of Rightmove, commented: “There’s an autumn window for new sellers where a sensible asking price combined with this better market could get you traded up into your next home before Christmas. Some would-be sellers may be concerned by the limited choice of suitable property currently available, and will have to decide whether to take a chance on finding something fresh to the market after they have found a buyer. This increases the risk and stress of moving, but with choice getting increasingly limited in popular areas they need to have a buyer lined up to improve their chances of securing their next home. “The recession appears to have hit prices harder in the north, and this is compounded by lenders’ more conservative attitude to risk. Lenders quite naturally prefer to lend to lower risk borrowers in better locations, with better job security, larger deposits and more resilient property values. “Confidence is up, stock is down, and the number of people searching is high. There are lots of positives but too few buyers can put down the 40% deposits that are needed in order to secure the best mortgage deals. Finance greases the wheels of the property market, and it is anybody’s guess when we might see the necessary level of competitive funding return. Frustrated home hunters should note the expected ten year timetable to wind up Lehman Brothers, giving a clear indication of the time required to rebuild the banking system.” Read more to top Industry news Roger Hughes It is with sadness we have to announce the death of Roger Hughes. Roger spent many years working in senior positions in the house building industry after joining Westbury in the late 1970’s and was a central part of the 'buy out' team there in 1984/85. After leaving his position on the Westbury Board he ran divisions for both McAlpine Homes and David Wilson Homes and enjoyed great success with both. In his youth he had been a top flight footballer and later in life was a keen golfer. Roger's funeral will take place at Gloucester Cathedral on Thursday 1st October at 12.30pm, refreshments will be in the Chapter House. The immediate family will go off to the Crematorium at 1.30pm and return to the Chapter House to see everyone. to top Matthew Taylor MP named new National Housing Federation chair Matthew Taylor MP was named the new chair of the National Housing Federation this week – and immediately set out his vision. Mr Taylor, who will stand down from Parliament at the next election, was elected for a three-year term as Federation chair at the organisation’s annual general meeting (AGM) in Birmingham. Mr Taylor was author of last year’s review on rural housing, commissioned by the Prime Minister – and earlier this year was the unanimous recommendation of a Federation nominations panel. Speaking following his appointment, Mr Taylor said: “Housing is the most pressing issue in the country, and I have a burning belief that solving housing problems can transform lives and neighbourhoods. “It’s because of the interest I have in the housing agenda that I leapt at the chance to chair the Federation – I want to make a difference in the national debate on housing. “I also want to make sure that what is already an impressively effective campaigning organisation stays that way, and becomes still sharper to meet the changes we will face after the recession and general election.” Read more to top New Deputy Chair for Construction Industry Training Board Ms Judy Lowe has been appointed as Deputy Chair of the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) from 1st October 2009 by Kevin Brennan, Minister for Further Education, Skills, Apprenticeships and Consumer Affairs. In announcing the appointment Mr Brennan said: “I am very pleased to confirm the appointment of Ms Lowe as Deputy Chair for the Construction Industry Training Board. I am sure Ms Lowe’s knowledge and experience of the industry will be invaluable in helping the Board to best address the training needs of the industry.” Read more to top Changes to the planning system Steve Quartermain, CLG Chief Planner, has written to all local planning authorities advising them of the changes to the planning system which will come into force on 1st October. These relate to extending the time limit of planning permissions and making non material amendments to extant permissions. Fees for applications to extend time limits will not be changed in time for the 1st October date and will require a separate change to the fees regulations. CLG are keen to make this change as soon as possible. Until that time the full application fee will apply. Please click here for a copy of the letter and details of the changes to top CML responds to Which? mortgage satisfaction survey The Council of Mortgage Lenders this week commented on the latest Which? mortgage satisfaction survey, noting that people are more satisfied with their mortgage lender than they were a year ago. Overall, average customer satisfaction rose from 58% to 62% and the CML believes this result reflects the efforts that the lending industry has been making to improve customer service and communication. Commenting on the results, CML Director General Michael Coogan said: “It is good news that consumers are increasingly satisfied with their lenders. Lenders have been working hard, under very challenging market conditions, to communicate effectively with their borrowers and treat them fairly. These efforts are bearing fruit, as this survey reinforces.” Beneath the topline result, however, some caution may be needed. While the total survey is based on a sample of 1,915 borrowers (out of the 11.1 million mortgages in the UK), the numbers relating to each individual lender are modest. Read more to top Planning Applications: June Quarter 2009, (England) The latest national statistics on planning applications were released under the auspices of the UK Statistics Authority this week. This release presents quarterly statistics on local planning authorities in England. It covers information on Planning applications received and decided including decisions on applications for residential developments (dwellings) and Gypsy and Traveller pitches and enforcement activities. These are provided at national, regional and local authority level. Key points from the latest release are: The number of planning applications received by district level planning authorities decreased by 21% when compared with the June 2008 quarter; District level planning authorities also saw a decrease of 27% in the number of applications decided (granted or refused) when compared with the same quarter a year ago; Decisions on planning applications for residential developments (dwellings) decreased by 37% in the June quarter 2009 compared with the June quarter 2008. Decisions on major residential developments (10 or more dwellings) fell by 46% over the same period; The percentage of major applications determined within the 13 week target was 71% compared with 72% in the June 2008 quarter; Authorities that undertake county level planning activity determined 302 applications; a decrease of 19% when compared with the same quarter a year ago. Read more to top Economic news CBI forecast: Economic outlook brightens slightly but 2010 remains tough The UK economy is expected to emerge from recession through modest growth in the third and fourth quarters of this year, but constraints on demand will ensure that growth in 2010 is fragile, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said this week. Revealing its latest economic forecast, the CBI said that near-term economic prospects are brightening. A recovery is underway in the global economy, which has been boosted by substantial fiscal and monetary stimuli, and the inventory cycle is starting to turn, both at home and abroad, which is helping to lift production. However, the pace of recovery in 2010 is expected to be slow. The CBI predicts that UK GDP will post quarter-on-quarter growth of 0.3% in 2009 Q3, edging up to 0.4% in Q4 as consumers bring spending forward in advance of the VAT increase in January. However, this will dampen spending in early 2010 and although companies may be rebuilding stocks, they are likely to do so very cautiously. As a result, 2010 should start with very weak growth of only 0.1% in Q1 2010, and 0.3% in Q2. Richard Lambert, CBI Director-General, said: "The outlook is improving as the UK draws strength from quantitative easing, a weak pound and a recovering global economy. Although growth this quarter should mark the end of the recession, conditions in the UK will remain tough for some time yet, and it is difficult to see where demand growth will come from.” Read more to top Bank of England: Minutes of the MPC meeting held on 9th and 10th September 2009 The Bank of England published the minutes of the Monetary Policy Committee meeting held on 9th and 10th September 2009 at which it was decided to maintain the Bank Rate at 0.5% and continue with the programme of asset purchases totalling £175bn. The minutes state that: “There had been a number of developments during the month with positive implications for the short term. The world economic data had generally been stronger than the Committee had expected at the time of the August [Inflation] Report. In the United Kingdom, the GDP data for 2009 Q2 had been revised upwards. The more recent data on construction and industrial production had suggested further upward revisions to the Q2 GDP data were likely, and manufacturing output had grown strongly in July. Business surveys had continued to improve. Broad money growth had picked up. “Asset prices had continued to rise. The recovery in equity and house prices meant that collateral values had risen, which should, other things equal, increase the availability of credit and reduce the cost of borrowing. Market expectations of future Bank Rate had fallen; the exchange rate had depreciated; and gilt yields were down. Three-month Libor had fallen to its lowest rate since the mid 1980s, and that rate was an important benchmark for the cost of companies’ borrowing. All of these financial market developments were likely to boost nominal spending in due course. “The near-term downside risks to economic activity had lessened during the month. And there was a possibility that the recovery in asset prices and confidence could mark the start of a virtuous upward spiral for the economy. In addition to these positive developments in activity and asset markets, inflation would probably be higher in the short-term than the Committee had thought a month ago, though it was still likely to be extremely volatile. “But these short-term developments had limited implications for the medium-term inflation outlook. Although the data on output growth were more encouraging, the level of output had fallen significantly and there was likely still a large measure of spare capacity in the economy. Moreover, even if GDP growth had turned positive in Q3, it was unlikely to have reached the point where the level of spare capacity was shrinking.” Read more to top Government and political news Liberal Democrats accuse both Labour and the Conservatives of failing on housing In her speech to the Liberal Democrat party conference on Monday, Shadow Housing Minister Sarah Teather accused both the other main parties of falling short on what was needed on housing. She criticised the Government over the growing social housing waiting list and the lack of practical help for those in need and the Conservatives of having “nothing to say on housing”. Ms Teather said Liberal Democrat policies on housing would include freeing “councils to build thousands and thousands of extra social homes” and raising standards in private as well as social rented accommodation by “cutting VAT on repair and renewal, tax relief on property improvements and increasing institutional investment”. Recognising that “the recession has hit house building hard” and that “Section 106 has dried up”, she suggested that other ideas should be explored for providing affordable housing such as “local housing bonds ... where savers club together to invest in the future of their community”. She also advocated bringing empty properties back into use, the Government building new homes “on all the surplus land that they own, [so that] we could house almost another 100,000 families” and offering young first-time buyers attractive prices for improving empty publicly-owned housing. to top ... and promise more rural affordable homes and increased scope for councils to tax second homes In his speech to the conference, Shadow Environment Secretary Tim Farron pledged State backing for creating 50,000 new affordable homes in rural areas through innovative methods such as grants for converting disused farm buildings and to “give councils the power to increase tax on second homes in those areas worst affected and to use that money to create affordable homes for local families”. to top ...while floating a possible tax on homes worth more than £1m The Liberal Democrat leadership also floated the idea of a redistributive tax on those owning homes worth more than £1 million to help fund a lowering of tax for those on low incomes. This proposal proved more controversial, with criticism voiced by some members of the party. to top John Healey: Housing associations must raise their game in the downturn Housing Minister John Healey has called on housing associations to raise their game and do more to create new apprenticeship opportunities and help people get on the housing ladder and stay in their homes during the downturn. He confirmed that any housing association bidding for a share of the £7.5bn available for affordable housing will for the first time now be required to offer apprenticeship and local job opportunities. The Government estimates this will create 1,500 apprenticeship places over the next two years, on top of the 1,300 places expected through the Prime Minister's £1.5bn Housing Pledge - which could take the total of new apprenticeship places to nearly 3,000 over the next two years. Mr Healey also called on housing associations to do more to fulfill their social role during the downturn, and help more of those struggling to pay their mortgages to stay in their homes by going through the Mortgage Rescue Scheme. Read more to top Events Housebuilding Innovation Awards 2009 - BOOK NOW! Housebuilder Media is delighted to announce that Gyles Brandreth, broadcaster, journalist and ex MP, will be presenting at the Housebuilding Innovation Awards on Thursday 5th November 2009. The shortlist for the Awards was unveiled earlier this month, and reveals the outstanding innovative achievements the industry has made in the past year. Click here for full details The Awards, which are supported by the Government, have become among the most sought after in the industry as they recognise excellence in innovation in all aspects of the housebuilding business. The culmination of the Awards is the announcement of the housebuilding firms deemed to be the overall Innovators of the Year –previous winners have included Redrow, Barratt, Explore Living and Midas. The winners will be announced at a glittering black tie awards ceremony on Thursday 5th November at the Millennium London Mayfair Hotel For further information or a booking form please contact the events team on 020 7960 1646 or visit www.house-builder.co.uk to top WHAT HOUSE? Awards 2009 – gala presentation luncheon Tickets and tables are now available for the 2009 What House? Awards, taking place at London's Grosvenor House Hotel on Friday 20th November. The event is one of the highlights of the house building calendar, as the industry meets to salute the best new homes in Britain. To book your seats for this prestigious event please email Derek Smith. Or download a booking form at www.whathouse.co.uk/awards to top Housing Market Intelligence Conference – Housing Minister confirmed Savoy Place, London -Tuesday 13th October 2009 Housing Minister John Healey has now been confirmed as a speaker for October’s HMI Conference completing a heavy weight line up of expert speakers for the industry’s leading annual policy conference. Confirmed speakers now include: John Healey MP, Housing Minister Grant Shapps MP, Shadow Housing Minister Sir Bob Kerslake, Homes & Communities Agency Stewart Baseley, HBF Michael Coogan, Council of Mortgage Lenders John Stewart, HBF Imtiaz Farookhi, NHBC For further information or a booking form please contact the events team on 020 7960 1646 or visit www.house-builder.co.uk to top HBF Annual Technical Conference 2009 – The TechnoCentre, Coventry The Building Regulatory Agenda – from here to 2016 Wednesday 18th November 2009 The conference aims to look at the forthcoming amendments to the Building Regulations, addressing CLG’s policy overview and in particular concentrating on the recent Parts F & L consultation. Expert speakers from CLG, BRAC, NHER, Zero Carbon Hub and BRE will be there to answer your questions on all building regulation issues. For further information please visit www.house-builder.co.uk or contact the events team on 020 7960 1646 to top For other HBF events visit the website http://www.hbf.co.uk/index.php?id=eventsandmeetingsFor HBM events visit http://www.hbmedia.co.uk/ to top Rosie Hinchliffe/Steve Turner View Previous Weekly News Summary
