Self-Build Post-Election 2015

The 2015 election results are in – but what effect will they have on self-builders?

I thought summarising the impact of the election results would be quite difficult, because coalitions mean that promises can disappear as soon as the smoke of the election has cleared. But the Conservatives have won a clear majority, so we can expect their commitments on housing to be honoured. But what are they promising self-builders, renovators and extenders?

Well, I think the most obvious result will be that the Right to Build legislation, which was progressing well through parliament just before the election under Conservative MP Richard Bacon, will now become law. The legislation intended to enable this – the Self-Build and Custom Housebuilding Act – was passed on 26th March.

Doubling self build by 2020

The government’s stated aim is to at least double the number of custom and self-build homes by 2020. Right to Build will require councils to allocate land to local people to create their own properties – as is the norm in most of Europe.

The legislation will require local authorities to keep a register of available brownfield land and to ensure that 90% of suitable sites have planning permission by 2020. Although this bill already has cross-party support, with a Tory majority it’s likely to become reality with some speed.

We can also anticipate continued support for locally-led garden cities and towns such as Ebbsfleet and Bicester, which have built-in self and custom build allocations, along with the prioritisation of brownfield development and the necessary infrastructure to support it.

The Tories promise 200,000 new starter homes as well as a commitment to fund new housing zones to transform existing development sites into plots for new residences. The latter initiative is expected to create an additional 95,000 homes nationwide.

In the south, we have the newly-created London Land Commission, with a mandate to identify and release all surplus brownfield land owned by the public sector. There’s no denying that this is an area of the country with clear self and custom build opportunities.

Green home funding changes

The end of the coalition and, in particular, the loss of Liberal Democrat Ed Davey from the DECC, may precipitate a dramatic reduction in eco subsidies. I would not be surprised if the Green Deal is discreetly retired.

I also believe we might soon see a dramatic reduction in subsidies for Feed-In Tariffs and the Renewable Heat Incentive, especially as the hardware for micro-generation is getting cheaper and more mainstream – plus the need to cut the deficit is becoming more pressing.

I don’t anticipate a radical change to the planning system, but we can expect a continuation of neighbourhood planning initiatives and for the government to perservere with protections against development in green belt areas. The election result won’t please everyone, but overall, for self and custom builders, I’d say it’s good news.

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