Fears have been raised that dozens of affordable flats planned for a major housing development could ‘disappear’ within five years. Housing association Great Places wants to build 73 ‘rent-to-buy’ apartments on a former car wash site in Stockport town centre.
The one and two-bedroom homes would be spread across two adjoining blocks on disused land at King Street West - part of the regeneration zone overseen by the town’s mayoral development corporation (MDC). These would be let to working households at a discounted rent, giving tenants the opportunity to save for a deposit to buy their first home.
After five years they are offered the opportunity to purchase their apartment outright, or can increase their share in it over a longer period of time via a process known as ‘staircasing’. But the prospect of the ‘100pc affordable’ development to effectively becoming market housing overnight raised concerns at the latest meeting of the council’s Central Area committee.
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Coun Andy Sorton was among those who questioned the scheme. “We should be celebrating tonight that we have 100pc affordable homes, but in five years’ time we might not have one affordable home on that site,” he said.
