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New development of 80 homes in Canterbury helps meet city's desperate need for affordable housing
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| Wednesday 8th September 2010 |
Cllr Tony Austin, Canterbury City Council’s Executive member for Housing, is pictured planting the tree at Kingsbrook Park. He is helped by Tim Warren, Town & Country’s new initiatives manager, and Alisdair Chant, managing director of Berkeley Homes Partnership Homes.
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A new £11 million development of flats and houses will help to meet the desperate need for affordable homes in Canterbury.
The completion of the 80 affordable homes at Kingsbrook Park was marked with the ceremonial planting of a Himalayan birch tree on Monday 6 September.
Forty eight of the homes are for rent to people on Canterbury City Council’s housing need register. The other 32 are for shared ownership, a part-buy, part rent scheme which offers a route to home ownership for people who cannot afford a mortgage on the full value of a property.
The affordable homes have been built by Berkeley Homes (Capital) Plc as part of a larger development of private homes for sale. They have been handed over to Town & Country Housing Group, a housing association which provides more than 8,000 affordable homes throughout the South East.
The Homes and Communities Agency which channels Government money into affordable housing schemes, gave a grant of £4 million towards the project.
The homes for rent have been let through Kent Homechoice, the system which allows eligible people to ‘bid’ on the homes they would like to live in.
Some of the flats and houses for shared ownership are still available. Prices start at £34,375 for a 25 per cent share in a one bedroom flat to £68,750 for a 25 per cent share in a three-bedroom house.
An open day for prospective purchasers will be held on Saturday 11 September from 11am to 1pm.
Colin Lissenden, Town & Country’s acting development director said: “Berkeley have built these homes to a very high standard and we have received a lot of positive comments from the residents who have moved in.
“It is a fantastic riverside development in a position which is very handy for the city centre and Canterbury West train station.
“We have already had a lot of interest in the shared ownership homes and we know that they will be popular.”
Akin Durowoju, head of area at the Homes and Communities Agency, said: “The hard work of our partners and the investment from the HCA has made these new homes possible.
“There is a great need for new and affordable homes in the area and this new development gives the Canterbury community an opportunity to take advantage of a property with a reduced rent or even step foot on the housing ladder though the HomeBuy shared ownership scheme.”
There are currently 3,853 applicants on Canterbury City Council’s housing needs register.
When completed, the Kingsbrook Park development will include a children’s play area, a basketball court and a five-a-side football pitch.
For details of the shared ownership open day call Cubitt & West on 0844 335 2240 or e-mail shared.ownership@cubittandwest.co.uk. |
| Posted by Kim for Town & Country Housing Group |
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