Flintshire set to pull out of managed lettings scheme

A council is pulling out of a managed lettings scheme for affordable housing because it is losing money.

North East Wales (NEW) Homes, set up by Flintshire council in 2014, currently manages 25 properties for landlords as well as building homes for rent.

The council is looking for a private operator to take over managed lettings, which costs over £73,000 a year to run but has only raised £20,000.

The firm said it would now focus its energies on building new properties.

Chief housing officer Neal Cockerton said keeping management fees low and charging below-market rents meant less money coming in to cover costs.

In a report to Flintshire's ruling cabinet, he said the scheme "makes available much-needed affordable and well-managed properties in the county, but presents considerable challenges financially", according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Mr Cockerton added that the launch in 2015 of Rent Smart Wales - the Welsh Government's landlord licensing scheme - had reduced the number of landlords wanting to work with NEW Homes.

The company is also planning to pull out of a scheme for people aged over 55, which involves leasing their houses to allow them to move into more suitable sheltered housing.

Their homes are then made available to tenants at an affordable rent.

But Mr Cockerton said there was a low uptake with only two properties currently involved, suggesting the scheme "appears to have taken up a disproportionate level of staff time".

He said NEW Homes was negotiating with Flintshire council to pull out of the two schemes once alternative arrangements could be made for the landlords, tenants and homeowners involved.

Jan Lycett, chair of the NEW Homes board said it was "closing the managed lettings scheme" to help "maximise the delivery of much needed new affordable homes throughout Flintshire".

"The company is in an excellent financial position to move forward and become a key partner locally in delivering additional homes in future years," she added.

The cabinet will be asked to approve the changes at a meeting next Tuesday.