HBF analysis highlights section 106 affordable homes crisis

More than 700 housing developments are estimated to have stalled, with around 8,500 affordable homes due to be built at risk as social housing providers continue to fail to take them on, according to the Home Builders Federation.

HBF’s research, released today (October 1), also estimates that around 900 completed affordable homes currently stand empty as registered providers (RPs), suffering from a “perfect storm” of economic and policy challenges, cannot commit to purchasing them from housebuilders under section 106 agreements.

These agreements see local authorities mandate the number of affordable homes housebuilders must deliver on their sites. RPs buy these properties at a reduced price.

With this delivery model, housebuilders are responsible for around 45% of all new affordable homes each year.

If these homes are not contracted, “housing delivery grounds to a halt as developments are stalled, phased differently or even rendered unviable altogether”, with, in some cases, affordable homes standing empty, HBF said. The number of bids for section 106 affordable homes has declined in recent years.

The more than 700 housing schemes estimated to have been delayed is over the past three years, reducing availability of all tenures of housing …