Purpose

The report sought approval to
purchase an additional 4 homes in Thanet District Council’s
General Fund for use as TA. The Council has been successful in securing
another 4 homes from Vistry, a developer it has previously worked
well with. This paper sought approval to proceed with acquiring the
homes at £1,050,000 from this developer.

Decision

Cabinet
agreed the following:
 
1. 
That the Council progresses with the acquisition of
the 4 homes at an acquisition price of £1,050,000.

Reasons for the decision

Purchasing the Homes at
Westwood Point enables the Council to increase its TA stock
further.
 
It also provides additional
homes that will undoubtedly help with reducing the cost of TA for
the Council through payments to third-party nightly-paid
accommodation providers.
 
It also reduces the social toll
on those households placed as those people and households to whom
the Council accepts a homeless duty will be housed in the Thanet
district and not placed away from their support networks and in
other boroughs around the county.

Alternative options considered

The Council could elect to not
acquire these 4 properties. It has other homes in the area and
there is an argument that it is taking homes that could be of an
open market tenure. There have been internal discussions about this
fact, within the Corporate Plan context of creating a thriving
sense of place.
 
However, having these 4 homes
will be easier to manage and maintain, given other homes in the
area. It also shows a much-shared understanding of the needs and
preferences of the Council and the developer.
 
The Council could ask the
developer to consider an alternative mix of homes or different
tenures - however the need for homes for temporary accommodation is
laid bare in the report. Therefore, this mix is the most relevant
to the needs clearly demonstrated. Furthermore, the Council is set
up to manage these homes.
 
The Council could wait for
longer to see if they sold on the open market or if they were
obtained by a registered provider (RP). However, as previously
mentioned in reports, very few RPs are likely to make an offer for
the properties. Though RPs are beginning to express a tentative
interest in bidding for s106 homes and additionality homes again,
they have yet to do so and developers continue to look to the
Council as a trusted delivery partner to get their sites
away.