Affordable Housing

Chester's Housing Market

Chester has a very buoyant housing market with a substantial amount of new building in progress. It continues to be a hot-spot for developers, with the main focus upon the regeneration of derelict inner city sites, turning them into attractive homes for city centre living. These prestigious developments attract high premiums, which can put them out of the reach of many local people, so the Council is working with developers to secure the development of affordable housing on each new appropriate site that comes forward. Most of the new building is on "Brownfield" not "Greenfield" sites, thus protecting and enhancing Chester's environment. In the rural villages surrounding Chester, development opportunities are more limited and house prices are also high, again presenting issues of affordability which we are addressing with our partners

High house prices

Chester as a whole has house prices with house price inflation topping 28% in 2003/04 in 2004 average prices were over £173,000 compared to the north-west average of around £111,000. The city has the second highest house prices in Cheshire, just behind Macclesfield. Traditional first time buyers' properties are particularly high, with the average price of a terraced property over £135,000 making it very difficult for local people to get onto the first rung of the property ladder. Even the lowest priced housing in the district exceeds £100,000, requiring an income of over £30,000 a year to support a mortgage.

Meeting Peoples' Need for Affordable Housing

The need for affordable housing in Chester has been determined by a range of information, including a Housing Needs Survey.  To access the Survey follow the link below:

• Housing Needs Survey Main Report  (480 KB)
• Housing Needs Survey Summary  (218 KB)

These surveys have helped identify and quantify the need for affordable housing across Chester, and together indicate that a significant proportion of local residents cannot afford to rent or buy without some form of discount or subsidy.

The impact of high property prices has been most acutely felt by those in Chester who wish to access the property ladder. Traditionally it is the apartment and terraced houses that form the more affordable end of the local housing market, however the average price of a flat in 2003/04 exceeded £150k and average terraced house prices exceeded £135k. Average household incomes for Chester district are at or below £25,000 therefore implying that average households would need to borrow up to 6 times their income in order to access the local housing market.

Furthermore, some 28% of households have an annual income of £15,000 or less. In response to this the council has adopted through its Local Plan, specific policies to help deliver more affordable homes.

Affordable homes can encompass a range of both subsidised and sub-market housing specifically designed for those unable to compete on the local open housing market.  It may include accommodation within converted and / or mixed use property, on allocated sites, "exception" sites and "windfall" sites.

There are 3 types of affordable housing:

• Social renting- main Housing Associations are Chester and District Housing Trust, Muir Group and Arena Housing.
• Shared Ownership - applicants buy a percentage of the property with a mortgage and pay rent on the rest. This will always be cheaper than a mortgage for the full amount.  For social renting and shared ownership applicants need to be on ALL of the RSL's lists. There is a leaflet available from the City Council with all Housing Association names and addresses.  Selection procedures will favour low / medium income earners with a connection to the local area.
• Low cost discount for sale - applicants buy a property outright at a discount off the market value. The discount will apply to re-sales of the property as well. Schemes will vary as they are developed.

For an up to date list of new affordable housing schemes around Chester, contact Cath Forkin in the Housing Section at the council, The Forum, Chester, CH1 2HS on 01244 402563, or email: housing@chester.gov.uk.