Issue - meetings

To seek approval, in principle, from Cabinet for the purchase of the leasehold interest in a residential property in Dovercourt.

RESOLVED that Cabinet –

(a)     authorises, in principle, the purchase of the 75% leasehold interest in this property; and

(b)     subject to its decision later in the meeting on terms, authorises the Corporate Director (Operations and Delivery), in consultation with the Assistant Director (Governance), to enter into a contract and transfer deed to complete the purchase of the property as set out in the related Part B (private and confidential) report.

Cabinet considered a joint report of the Corporate Finance & Governance Portfolio Holder and the Housing Portfolio Holder (A.5), which sought its approval, in principle, from Cabinet for the purchase of the leasehold interest in a two-bedroom house in Dovercourt.

Members were aware that the Council was committed to increasing its housing stock in order to meet rising demands for high quality, affordable housing in the District. Those homes would be acquired or built via a range of approaches.

It was reported that this proposal was to purchase the leasehold interest in a two bedroom property in Dovercourt. The property was currently leased under the Council’s Do It Yourself Shared Ownership scheme and the Council already had a 25% share of the lease and was the freeholder.

The Council had Section 106 affordable housing contribution capital receipts that would be used for this purchase. On completion the Council would have 100% ownership of the property.

The property had scored highly on the acquisition matrix, which formed part of the Acquisitions and Development Policy adopted by Cabinet in October 2020.

In June 2022 Portfolio Holder approval had been obtained to initiate the Council’s Property Dealing Procedure, to obtain an independent valuation of the property and to negotiate a price with the owners.

An independent market valuation had subsequently been obtained and negotiations with the executor of the lessee’s estate had been completed satisfactorily, to enable the purchase to be progressed to a conclusion. Purchasing this property would add an additional property to the Council’s housing stock in the Housing Revenue Account.

In order to provide an additional dwelling for the Council’s housing stock to meet local need and generate rental income whilst recognising that the purchase of the 75% leasehold interest in this property carried a financial cost:-

It was moved by Councillor P B Honeywood, seconded by Councillor G V Guglielmi and:-

RESOLVED that Cabinet –

(a)     authorises, in principle, the purchase of the 75% leasehold interest in this property; and

(b)     subject to its decision later in the meeting on terms, authorises the Corporate Director (Operations and Delivery), in consultation with the Assistant Director (Governance), to enter into a contract and transfer deed to complete the purchase of the property as set out in the related Part B (private and confidential) report.