A Cardiff based chartered surveyor says Cardiff Council’s plan to suspend the ‘Right to Buy’ does not offer a solution to the shortage of new council houses.
Chartered surveyor Tony Filice says “The Council have not taken on board the replenishing and creating social housing or affordable properties for the needy. There is a big gap and it’s going to get worse because they’re not progressing on the building which is required”.
At a cabinet meeting at City Hall on Thursday, Councillors approved recommendations to suspend the ‘Right to Buy’ for five years. It will now need to be approved by the Welsh Government.
Since 1985, housing stock has decreased from 23,000 homes to 13,807, mostly due to the Right to Buy scheme. According to Cardiff City Council, 8,300 applicants are on the waiting list for social housing with 4,600 of them in significant need. 10,120 affordable homes are needed in Cardiff over the next five years to meet increasing demand.
A public consultation held at the end of last year said more than 57% of the public approved the proposal to end the Right to Buy in Cardiff.
The Right-to-Buy scheme was introduced in 1980 by the Thatcher Government allowing tenants to buy their council home at a discounted price. Most tenants of social housing have the right-to-buy their home after five years of occupancy at a discount of up to £8,000 of the value of the house.
