1. The Housing and Planning Act 2016 - an update
Andrew Barry-Purssell – Place and Investment Policy Manager
June 2016

2. The Act The Act received its Royal Assent on 12 May. It aims to:
Boost housebuilding
Increase homeownership levels
Streamline the planning system
Use social sector housing more efficiently
Improve enforcement in the private rented sector
There is limited detail in the Act on some important aspects - most areas will be subject to further regulation and statutory guidance
This presentation sets out what we think we know about implementation – information pre-dates last Thursday and ensuing events

3. An overview of the Act PART 1: NEW HOMES IN ENGLAND Starter homes
Self-build and custom housebuilding
PART 2: ROGUE LANDLORDS AND PROPERTY AGENTS
Banning orders
Database of rogue landlords/agents
Rent repayment orders
PART 3: RECOVERING ABANDONED PREMISES

4. An overview..continued PART 4: SOCIAL HOUSING
Implementing the right to buy on a voluntary basis
Vacant higher value local authority housing
Rents for high income social tenants
Reducing regulation of social housing
Secure tenancies
PART 5: HOUSING, ESTATE AGENCIES AND RENTCHARGES
Electrical safety standards
Licensing of HMOs
PART 6: PLANNING IN ENGLAND
PART 7: COMPULSORY PURCHASE

5. Starter Homes
New dwellings available for purchase by qualifying new first-time buyers to be sold at a discount of 20% of market value and at a price below set caps (£450k in London; £250k elsewhere) and subject to any restriction on sale/letting made in regulations. To be delivered through planning (as a condition for granting permission)
Lower age limit for buyers (23) as well as an upper one (40)
Regulations may allow for joint purchases involving people who don’t all meet the age requirement
Needs regulations to come into force
Have had a consultation paper on “Starter Homes Regulations”:
Restrictions on sales (8 year maximum tapered period)
Age 40 restriction and joint sales
20% requirement, on sites of 10 units or more/0.5 hectares, countrywide
Commuted sums (purpose built private rented housing may only have to make payments)
Exemptions: general viability, specialist housing with element of care, student housing, custom build

6. Self-Build Homes
A requirement to grant planning permission “in respect of enough serviced plots of land to meet the demand for self-build and custom housebuilding in the local authority’s area”
Section 11 allows for exemptions
Will come into force on date set by regulation

7. Rogue landlords/property agents
Banning orders
Database of rogue landlords and property agents to be maintained by LAs, content to be specified in regulations
Rent repayment orders
To come into force on date set by regulations. Next steps:
RPOs likely to be implemented from April 2017; database/banning orders from October 2017
Consultation expected on database and post-BO management orders in September
Separate consultation on mandatory HMO licensing expected

8. Housing association right to buy and sale of high value voids
RTB being piloted by five associations. Details of the final scheme being worked up by Government with National Housing Federation based on pilot – looking at eligibility; discretion; application and sales process; portability and 1 for 1 replacement.
Guidance expected shortly with full roll-out autumn 2017
High(er) value voids: Bill was amended to deal with “higher” rather than “high” to address situation in higher value areas
To be implemented by formula. LAs likely to be able to keep enough to repay debt, transaction costs and 30% of replacement cost. New homes likely to be exempt
DCLG crunching data – suggestion we will receive first estimates of determination this summer with payment in early 2017
2 for 1 replacement in London: new Mayor, devolution deal?

9. Mandatory rents for high income social tenants
High income means not more than £40k pa in London (£31k elsewhere). Regulations to allow thresholds to be increased every 3 years in line with rises in CPI.
Additional rent will be higher of15% of income over the threshold or market rent
Won’t apply to households on universal credit/housing benefit. Income means “taxable income” (child benefit, DLA, Tax Credits will be disregarded)
“household” means any tenant, joint tenants and their spouses, partners or civil partners. Only income of two highest earners will be considered
In year 1 Las will only have to pay on sums actually collected (no formula) – Ministers may reconsider in light of experience. “Regulations will not expect LAs to collect where the administration costs would not be covered by the returns”.
Regulations expected in October, higher rents to apply from April 2017

10. Reducing regulation of social housing
A number of changes were made during the passage of the Act to reduce regulation of housing associations to help move them back into the private sector for public accounting purposes:
Removal of consents regime for disposals
Power for Secretary of State to make regulations to reduce or limit LAs’ influence over associations by appointing/removing officers and controlling voting rights (stock transferred to associations through LSVT)

11. Secure tenancies New secure tenancies for a fixed term of 2-10 years
Longer tenancies can be granted where households include children under 9 (to last until the child is 19)
Regulations will set out cases in which a lifetime tenancy can be granted
At end of fixed term, LHA will have to review to decide whether to offer a new tenancy, on the same or different property
Right of review – but only to determine if decision is in line with the landlord’s tenancy policy
Future succession (other than by spouse/civil partner) will result in a fixed term tenancy

12. Housing, estate agents and rent charges
Electrical safety standards: new duties on landlords to be made by regulation – may include requirement to have checks by a qualified person and set out qualifications required and when checks made
Fit and proper person test (HMOs etc): new criteria for landlords of licensed housing – should be able to remain in the UK and not be bankrupt
Financial penalties: LHAs will be able to impose civil penalties for some offences under the Housing Act 2004 as an alternative to prosecution (eg for failure to comply with an improvement ntice, offences committed by those controlling/managing HMOs, offences contravening management regulations in respect of an HMO)

13. Planning highlights
In the end, no neighbourhood right of appeal – LPAs will have to set out in planning reports how a neighbourhood plan has been taken into account in a recommendation to grant and identify any poits of conflict between recommendation and the NP.
Planning permission in principle – for “housing-led development”, but NOT minerals (ie fracking). PiP granted through plans/registers will last 5 years, on application 3 years
Provision added for “planning freedoms schemes” – removing/modifying specific planning provisions to help increase housing delivery in an area.
Carbon emissions SoS to conduct a review of “any minimum energy performance requirements approved by the SoS under building regulations in relation to dwellings in England”. Eh?

14. Land
Don’t forget:
Duty on ministers to engage with LAs on disposal of land
Duty on public bodies to prepare report of surplus land holdings
Power for Secretary of State to direct disposal of land
Reports on improving efficiency and sustainability of local authority buildings (and link with disposals of least well performingiloting alternative providers: Act states explicitly this only allows for temporary arrangements

15. That’s all over now… No it isn’t
Plenty of regulations to come (any spare Government lawyers around?)
Blackman Bill on homelessness
Neighbourhood Planning and Infrastructure Bill
Review of Community Infrastructure Levy
Anything flowing from Brexit
Anything flowing from having a new administration

16. Planning highlights (continued)
Piloting alternative providers: Act states explicitly this only allows for temporary arrangements
Regulations allowing pilots can only apply for five years at most
Requirement for Secretary of State to report on operation and effectiveness of any piloted arrangements
Regulations cannot allow LPA to be bound by anything said by an alternative provider