Assetz Capital urges for housebuilding support in Autumn Budget
Assetz Capital is calling on Chancellor Rishi Sunak to boost access to alternative funding for housebuilders in next week’s Autumn Budget.
Stuart Law (pictured), chief executive of the peer-to-peer business lender, said smaller developers can help the government meet its aim of building more eco-friendly homes but warned that financial support is needed.
Law said there is still a shortfall of appropriate housing stock and highlighted research from Savills that predicted the number of houses being built will not return to pre-pandemic levels until 2026 and even then will remain 20 per cent short of government targets.
Read more: Assetz Capital says CBILS helped NI property market bounce back
Read more: Assetz Capital warns labour and material shortage will push up house prices
“There is a clear opportunity for small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME) house builders to meet consumer demand with their expert local knowledge and rapid adoption of innovative housebuilding processes,” he said.
“In particular, with the ongoing energy crisis placing greater importance on the energy efficiency of homes than ever before, such businesses are in prime position to deliver much-needed ‘green’ housing through their use of modern methods of construction which are more precise and produce more eco-friendly homes.
“We’ll be paying close attention to the chancellor’s Budget next week and hope that improved access to alternative funding for such housebuilders is among the key environment-focused initiatives he is expected to announce given that the banks are pulling back loan support for SMEs at a rate not seen in the past 10 years.”
Read more: Assetz Capital warns developers must plan ahead due to material shortages