Developers give cold shoulder to Boris Johnson’s housing bank

An initiative to set up a "housing bank" to provide low-cost credit for residential developers in London has failed to create interest among its target market.  

Boris Johnson, the mayor of London, predicted in April that the bank would expedite the construction of 3,000 properties in the capital. According to figures filed on the Greater London Authority (GLA) website, it is set to reach less than 4% of that figure. 

The plan was that developers would use the bank’s $300m of credit to build properties that they would rent for a maximum of 80% of the market rate for at least seven years. However, developers have requested funding for 642 homes, of which only 106 will be completed by March 2018.

The GLA said: "It is hoped that it will be possible to accelerate delivery of some/all of the other homes and additional homes will be funded through continuous bidding to enable this target to be achieved." 

It added that the mayor was due to meet his pledge that 100,000 low-cost homes would be built in London during his two terms in office. 

A march will take place in London on 31 January to demonstrate against the capital’s soaring house prices and demand more affordable homes. Meanwhile, a petition for a rental cap in has been signed by more than 55,000 people.