£10m rented fund for rough sleepers by council
- 11 Mar
One local authority is investing in a property fund which is designed to own and manage accommodation for homeless people on waiting lists.
Croydon Council is initially investing £10m into Real Lettings, which has been designed to produce a return for investors that come from an increase in property values and rental income. It has been set up in partnership by fund manager Resonance and Broadway, a homelessness charity, reports Inside Housing.
Real Lettings is expected to secure 9 one and two bedroom properties in London for Croydon Council, and the investment is part of the council's 2014/15 budget.
Croydon Council is the first local authority to invest in the fund and will nominate the tenancies whilst Broadway will place households in the homes purchased by Resonance.
Resonance hopes to create a seven-year, closed-ended fund which will provide returns of 5-8% after inflation. It will bulk buy units from a panel of five to ten developers and landlords and then guarantee 100% occupancy and take on management and maintaence risk.
The fund is hoping to make up London's shortfall in temporary accommodation available to homeless people who are supported by Broadway. If it is successful, the council plans to invest more money later on.
Dudley Mead, cabinet member for housing, said: "With house prices going up beyond what is affordable to the council, we have to look at alternative and innovative ways of buying property to increase the supply of housing available to the council. This will ease the pressure on the council in managing homelessness and means we can place families in good quality accommodation as opposed to costly bed and breakfasts."
What do you think of this? Tweet us your comments @suppsolutions
Image source: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/707084
Related articles
- 11 Sep
New service to support homeless people in Birmingham
A new dedicated Homeless Street Triage car will be responding to the rising number of calls reporting homelessness, begging and anti-social drinking in the city, reports 24dash.In the last year –...
- 09 Sep
Gym in Kent hopes to improve health and fitness of homeless people
Riverside is a specialist in working with single homeless people to help them get their lives back on track and into accommodation. Their new project, a gymnasium, has been funded by the Riverside...
- 08 Sep
The cost of homelessness in Hackney doubles
Figures have shown that the cost of homelessness in 2009/10 was £3,092,255 compared to £7,167,440 in 2014/15, with a cut on staff spending from £3,239,653 to £2,608,491 reports 24dash.Hackney...
- 04 Sep
Two homelessness services to be investigated
The Scottish Housing Regulator is set to investigate every aspect of services offered by Dumfries and Galloway Council, whilst also examining how homeless people access help and support at Scottish...
- 03 Sep
Homeless project for young people under threat due to cuts
Platform for Life was expected to attract interest from numerous housing associations with its scheme to convert properties into accommodation for young people in further education, training or work,...
- 01 Sep
Charities warns Irish government of homelessness crisis
Social Justice Ireland is calling for a new funding system that will meet the demand and reveal that only 20 council homes for families have been completed within the first three months of this year,...
- 26 Aug
Newspaper office to become a centre for homeless people
The old office for the Doncaster Free Press is being transformed into flats and other facilities for people who are homeless, reports Hold the Front Page. The building is being turned into...
- 20 Aug
Cuts leaving people in Cheltenham needing homelessness support
Bosses at CCP and Cheltenham Borough Council have said the “devastating impact” of benefit cuts in the town are causing issues for many people, report the Gloucestershire Echo.Over the past few...
- 19 Aug
Concern that homelessness in Cambridge is at ‘tipping point’
Not only do figures show a rise in quarterly numbers by 24 households, they also reveal that over 350 cases were placed in temporary accommodation over the last year, which was a rise of 50 cases on...
- 11 Aug
Charities say Wales is “setting an example” for homelessness
A joint report by Crisis and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation has praised Welsh laws that are trying to address the issues of homelessness, reports the BBC.However they warn that the removal of...
How to Fund Housing Support and Social Care Services Good clear delivery of some complicated information. Jaqui Smith - Young Womens Housing Project
