Escalating property prices in rural areas are compelling native residents into lease agreements

Escalating property prices in rural areas are compelling native residents into lease agreements

In England's county council regions, rented properties—both social and private—now account for nearly one third of all housing, according to recent statistics. This trend, highlighted in a report published by the County Councils Network (CNN), indicates a significant shift in the rural housing landscape.

The report, which shows a 19% increase in rural renting outpacing rises in London and other English cities, underscores the worsening housing crisis in rural areas. The crisis is exacerbated by rising unaffordability, as hundreds of thousands of people are locked out of homeownership, a concern echoed by Richard Clewer, housing and planning spokesperson for CNN.

The CNN report also suggests a number of recommendations to accelerate the delivery of new homes of all tenures where there is most need, without concreting over the countryside. However, it is evident that the UK's Affordable Housing Schemes, while providing valuable tools to improve affordability and access to housing, fall short of fully addressing rural housing challenges.

Schemes such as Shared Ownership and Discount Market Sale provide routes to ownership, especially for first-time buyers or limited deposit holders. However, these come with resale restrictions, ownership caps, and lender concerns about marketability, which can limit attractiveness and uptake in rural areas.

Moreover, rural areas are often overlooked in strategic housing plans and funding allocation, contributing to a rise in rural homelessness and weakening local rural economies by pushing out young people and key workers. Reports specifically highlight rising homelessness in rural England, linked to affordability challenges and the lack of adequate affordable housing supply that meets rural community needs.

Larger housing reforms and investment programs, like the £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme, aim to build hundreds of thousands of new homes, but these are predominantly focused on urban and suburban environments with limited rural impact so far.

In light of these challenges, the CNN is calling for a new plan for rural housing, with a greater focus on social housing and a review of the right-to-buy policy. The right-to-buy policy, a government scheme that allows council tenants to buy their council home at a discount, has been criticised for taking affordable rental properties off the market.

Despite these issues, the Affordable Housing Scheme, launched in 2020 by the government, has already supported the delivery of over 6,000 affordable homes. The government is committed to creating a fair housing system that works for everyone in both urban and rural areas, including increasing first-time buyer numbers in all regions and boosting availability of new, genuinely affordable housing.

However, it is clear that more targeted rural strategies, better investment focus, and zoning reforms may be required to make these schemes more effective in rural settings. By addressing these challenges, we can help ensure that rural communities continue to thrive and that everyone has access to affordable housing, regardless of location.

References:

1. Government schemes: First Homes, Shared Ownership, Help to Build, etc., with known resale and lender-related restrictions
2. Rise in rural homelessness and weak local economies due to exclusion from planning and investment
3. Large national investment programs focused mainly on urban housing supply with limited rural reach
4. More than half a million people in the countryside have had to resort to renting, according to the CNN report.
5. The number of households in private and social rented properties in rural areas has increased by 550,000 between 2011 and 2021.
6. In private renting, there has been a 31% increase, higher than London's rise of 25%.
7. The County Councils Network (CNN) is calling for a new plan for rural housing, with a greater focus on social housing and a review of the right-to-buy policy.
8. The Affordable Housing Scheme, launched in 2020 by the government, has already supported the delivery of over 6,000 affordable homes.
9. The government is currently working towards creating a fair, affordable housing system.
10. More than half a million people in the countryside have had to resort to renting, according to the CNN report.
11. Rented properties, both social and private, now make up almost one third of all housing in England's county council regions.
12. The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities is committed to creating a fair housing system that works for everyone in both urban and rural areas, including increasing first-time buyer numbers in all regions and boosting availability of new, genuinely affordable housing.
13. The CNN report does not propose alleviating rural housing issues by concreting over the countryside.
14. The CNN report indicates that the right-to-buy policy has led to affordable rental properties being taken off the market.
15. House prices in rural counties are the most unaffordable outside London, with an average of £309,000.
16. Rural homelessness has climbed by 18% within the last three years.
17. The right-to-buy policy is a government scheme that allows council tenants to buy their council home at a discount.
18. The trend in England's rural areas, as suggested by the County Councils Network (CNN) report, shows a marked increase in rented properties, accounting for almost one third of all housing in the county council regions.
19. The CNN report reveals that more than half a million people in the countryside have had to resort to renting, with the number of households in private and social rented properties in rural areas increasing by 550,000 between 2011 and 2021.
20. The CNN report underscores the rising unaffordability in rural areas, with house prices being the most unaffordable outside London, averaging £309,000. This affordability crisis is driving hundreds of thousands of people out of homeownership and into renting, which has seen an increase of 31% in private renting, higher than London's rise of 25%.
21. Rural homelessness has climbed by 18% within the last three years, a concern that has been echoed by the CNN's housing and planning spokesperson, Richard Clewer. This has been linked to affordability challenges and the lack of adequate affordable housing supply that meets rural community needs.
22. In an effort to address these challenges, the CNN is calling for a new plan for rural housing, with a greater focus on social housing and a review of the right-to-buy policy. The report highlights that the right-to-buy policy has led to affordable rental properties being taken off the market, exacerbating the housing crisis in rural areas.

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