Housing crisis: Call for action (From Dorset Echo)

Housing crisis: Call for action

9:17am Wednesday 22nd August 2007 in

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RADICAL action is needed to tackle an escalating housing crisis across Weymouth, experts have said.

A new report commissioned by the National Housing Federation, which represents housing associations, says affordable housing waiting lists are spiralling out of control.

It calls for immediate action from the Government and support from the public for more building.

Problems highlighted in the report include:

• Weymouth's housing waiting list up 141 per cent in five years
• House prices in Weymouth and Portland up 224 per cent in the last 10 years compared to incomes up 11 per cent
• Growing numbers of second homes eating into housing supply
• Poor housing conditions, leading to social problems such as unemployment, bad school results and poor health
• Not enough government investment
• Lack of public support for new housing, with 'Nimbyism' slowing planning applications.

Federation spokesman Derek Cash said: "Figures show that we have a real crisis on our hands.

"Waiting lists are nearly quadrupling in some areas of Dorset.

"Our report shows the South West is only building 70 per cent of the homes we need every year and only half of social homes required.

"There is now a major backlog of demand from families across the region."

Coun Mike Goodman, Weymouth and Portland Borough Council's housing spokesman, said the council was working hard to allocate land for development and encourage employers to the area.

"It's easy for housing groups to put the blame on everyone else but they are part of the problem. They are sitting on large land banks after we have given planning permission and waiting for prices to go up," he said. "Gordon Brown needs to restore tax relief on pension funds so people don't try and save money by buying extra properties.

"People around Weymouth now are buying four or five properties and are trying to screw the most money they can out of tenants."

He added that, although housing demand is outstripping supply, homelessness levels in the borough are improving.

Graeme Stanley, chief executive of Synergy Housing Group which owns social housing across Weymouth, said small households and delays in government funding for new sites were adding pressure to social housing waiting lists.

The report is called South West Home Truths: The Real Cost of Housing 2007-2012. It says average homes in the region will reach £316,000 by 2012. It says 10,000 affordable homes a year will need to be built across the South West until 2026 to meet targets. A government green paper announced in July proposes £8 billion of investment to meet affordable housing targets, which could result in the building of 70,000 affordable houses a year by 2011.

HOW THE FIGURES ADD UP

Listed by:

Area: Average house price, Average income, Income needed for mortgage, % housing stock 2nd homes

England: £206,594, £19,271, £56,076, 1.08

South West: £210,541, £17,898, £57,147, 2.25

Dorset: £241,419, £17,389, £65,528, 3.37

Bournemouth: £207,547, £17,316, £56,334, 4.15

Poole: £265,922, £17,425, £72,179, 2.61

Christchurch: £252,177, £14,706, £68,448, 3.44

East Dorset: £271,955, £19,937, £73,816, 0.84

North Dorset: £223,177, £17,909, £60,577, 1.79

Purbeck: £252,644, £17,181, £68,575, 6.85

West Dorset: £249,208, £17,779, £67,642, 5.30

Weymouth/Portland: £196,445, £16,110, £53,321, 2.61

Returning student may be priced out

WEYMOUTH'S housing crisis is all too familiar to lifeguard Andrew Sloan.

After completing a university course in leisure and sport management this year the 22-year-old returned to his much-loved home town to find work.

But lack of well-paid jobs or affordable housing has forced Mr Sloan to move back to his mother's house in Radipole.

"I don't want to be living at home all my life but I am struggling to get funds together to buy anywhere," Mr Sloan said.

"I love it back here - I was born in Portland - and have hundreds of friends and family around but it's ridiculously expensive. I have searched all over the place in Preston and Weymouth town centre but my income is just not big enough to pay for anywhere."

The full-time lifeguard, who currently earns less than £20,000, will be searching for new work from next month that will help him get on the property ladder, but he says he is not hopeful of success.

"The Olympics is just going to drive prices up even more. I may end up having to move away if I can't find anywhere," he said.