The Home Builders Federation has published a new manifesto and is urging the next mayor of Manchester to make housing delivery a priority
The next mayor will need to tackle the Manchester housing crisis by accelerating delivery, improving affordability, and supporting economic growth, says the HBF manifesto.
With former mayor Andy Burnham having stepped up from running a city to running a nation, the next mayor will need to run a city that the current PM wants to put at the heart of the UK’s political discussion.
Greater Manchester has the potential to be a leading authority
The HBF manifesto sets out that, as a well established Combined Authority, Greater Manchester could become a model for the rest of the country in terms of strategic planning and devolved decision-making to build new homes as well as bring investment and new jobs.
They also highlight that if Greater Manchester achieved its new annual Standard Method housing target (14,400 homes) then it would each year:
- Support 50,000 jobs
- Generate £3.2 billion in economic activity
- Deliver £650 million of investment in affordable housing
- Generate £90 million of investment in new infrastructure, including £40 million for new and improved schools
- Support more than £400 million of spending in local shops and businesses
The crisis still looms, however, with affordability becoming worse with each year in the last two decades. House prices have risen faster than earnings, and the share of households owning a home with a mortgage has dropped from 39% to 28% in the North West. Supporting this, the number of private renters has more than doubled.
“A real opportunity”
Neil Jefferson, chief executive of the Home Builders Federation, said: “There is a real opportunity for the next Mayor of Greater Manchester to accelerate housing delivery and show how strong devolved leadership can help tackle the housing crisis.
“With greater powers over planning, transport and skills, the incoming mayor can create the conditions that allow more homes to be built in the right places, support local jobs and investment, and make home ownership more achievable for thousands of people across the region.
“Our manifesto sets out practical, deliverable interventions that would help Greater Manchester meet its housing ambitions and provide a blueprint for other Combined Authorities across the country.
“Increased taxes and policy costs, alongside suppressed demand due to a lack of affordable mortgage lending and no government support for buyers, are preventing builders from increasing housing supply and putting the government’s housing ambitions increasingly out of reach.”
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