Government grants £65m to build new London homes to rent

A major development of Build to Rent homes built specifically for private UK rent is set to receive a staggering £65m boost from the government.

Announced today (August 3) by Alok Sharma, Housing and Planning Minister, the deal will help to unlock over 7,600 new homes at the Wembley Park development in Brent, London.

This is currently one of the largest regeneration projects in the country, with at least 6,800 of these homes to be available for rent. Mr Sharma commented: “As part of our plan to fix the broken housing market, we’ve been taking action to create a bigger and better private rental market.

“Whether renting or owning, all families should have the security they need to be able to plan for the future. We support new Build to Rent developments so that tenants can have greater choice.”

This development is backed by a loan from the government’s Home Building Fund, a £3bn fund to increase the number of homes in England, which will bring more than 8,000 jobs to the Wembley Park area.

With just over 80k homes either completed or planned across England, the sector is constantly expanding and the industry estimates the private rent sector could grow to £70bn by 2022, providing an extra 15k homes each year.

These homes will include a mixture of studio flats and one, two or three bedroom properties, all located closely to the Wembley Park underground station.

Nick Walkely, chief executive at Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), said: “We’re determined to get more homes built now and increase the rate of future development.

“This particular development is a fantastic example of how we fund vital infrastructure to speed up the construction of much-needed quality homes for people to rent.”

As well as new homes, this government loan will be match-funded by Quintain to provide a £130m infrastructure investment to deliver new car and coach parking in Wembley Park, as well as an energy centre and the first installment of a new seven-acre public park.

Angus Dodd, Quintain’s chief executive, said: “The area is already home to a thriving community and will become the largest Build to Rent development in the UK.”

The work has begun on the new homes at Wembley Park and is set to be complete by 2026.