20.02.13
Liverpool housing plans for vacant properties
Liverpool City Council has set out plans to bring 179 vacant properties back into use, to revitalise housing and build more sustainable neighbourhoods.
The plans include a Homesteading scheme, where a number of properties will be sold to local residents for £1. They will be expected to refurbish the homes to Decent Home Standard and live there for five years, without sub-letting.
An ‘Own Place’ model could be developed where properties will be transferred to The Riverside Group, who will refurbish the houses and offer them for sale at 25% under market value.
Small groups of houses may also be sold to private landlords. The plans replace a contract offer made to developer Leader1 Liverpool to deliver housing regeneration in the three areas, which was withdrawn last year.
The Mayor’s Cabinet has been asked to approve the proposals by Friday 22 February.
Liverpool City Council’s cabinet member for housing, Cllr Ann O’Byrne, said: “We think that these plans provide a really good foundation for the future of housing in Granby, Kensington and Picton.
“We want to find innovative ways of bringing properties back into use and attracting people back into our neighbourhoods - whether that’s through offering homes for £1, or working with Registered Providers to refurbish homes and selling them at discounted prices.
“Ultimately, it’s about driving forward housing renewal, investing in the future of our communities and doing everything we can to provide good quality, affordable housing for the people who need it most.
“We have been working closely with the local community over the best way forward for these areas, and I hope that these new proposals will give them certainty that the housing renewal they have waited for, for so long, remains a priority for us.”
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