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Executive Summary

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION 6

2. SUMMARY 7

3. ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT 10

3.1 INTEREST RATES 10

3.2 INFLATION 10

3.3 PUBLIC SPENDING, UNEMPLOYMENT AND CONSUMPTION 11

3.4 FUTURE PROSPECTS 11

4. BACKGROUND INFORMATION 13

4.1 DEFINITION OF HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS 13

4.2 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND 13

4.3 TYPES OF HOUSING ASSOCIATION 15

4.4 TYPE OF HOUSING 18

5. MARKET SIZE AND STRUCTURE 22

5.1 MANAGEMENT OF HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS 22

5.2 MAIN HOUSING ASSOCIATION ORGANISATIONS 23

5.3 FINANCING OF HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS 26

5.4 MARKET SIZE 30 INTRODUCTION 30

5.5 MAJOR HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS IN ENGLAND 32

5.6 MAJOR HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS IN WALES 39

5.7 MAJOR HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS IN SCOTLAND 40

5.8 MAJOR HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS IN NORTHERN IRELAND 43

5.9 INVOLVEMENT OF HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS IN NEW BUILD 44

6. SPECIFICATION AND BUYING PROCESS 56

6.1 HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS ACTIVITY 56

6.2 THE SPECIFICATION PROCESS 62

6.3 SPECIFICATION CRITERIA 72

6.4 PURCHASING PROCESS 80

7. FUTURE PROSPECTS 83

8. APPENDICES - LIST OF MAJOR HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS 86

8.1 ENGLAND 86

8.2 SCOTLAND 90

8.4 WALES 93

TABLES AND CHARTS

CHART 1: HOUSING ASSOCIATION DWELLINGS UNDER MANAGEMENT ('000S) IN GREAT BRITAIN

TABLE 2: STRUCTURE OF HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS IN ENGLAND (1997)

TABLE 3: SELF CONTAINED UNITS OWNED BY HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS BY SIZE IN ENGLAND IN 1996 & 1994

TABLE 4: LETTINGS BY HOUSEHOLD TYPE IN ENGLAND IN 1996 & 1994

CHART 5: STOCK DESIGNED FOR OLDER PEOPLE (000S)

CHART 6: SELF-CONTAINED UNITS DESIGNED FOR WHEEL-CHAIR USERS (000S)

TABLE 7: GOVERNMENT GRANTS TO HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS 1990-1997

TABLE 8: THE SALE AND TRANSFER OF DWELLINGS IN ENGLAND 1992 - 1997

TABLE 9: STOCK OF DWELLINGS BY TENURE, HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS IN GREAT BRITAIN 1988 - 1997

CHART 10: STOCK OF DWELLINGS OF HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS COMPARED TO TOTAL HOUSING STOCKS IN GREAT BRITAIN 1988-1997

CHART 11: THE HOUSING MARKET IN ENGLAND BY TENURE 1995 (000S)

TABLE 12: OWNERSHIP OF SOCIAL HOUSING UNITS IN ENGLAND (1995)

TABLE 13: HOUSING ASSOCIATION OWNERSHIP - MARKET STRUCTURE IN ENGLAND (1997)

TABLE 14: MAJOR HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS IN ENGLAND (1997)

TABLE 15: HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS IN ENGLAND WITH 5,000-10,000 UNITS

CHART 16: THE HOUSING MARKET IN WALES BY TENURE 1995 (000S)

TABLE 17: TOP 13 ASSOCIATIONS IN WALES

CHART 18: THE HOUSING MARKET IN SCOTLAND BY TENURE 1995 (000S)

TABLE 19: MAJOR HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS IN SCOTLAND (1997)

CHART 20: THE HOUSING MARKET IN NORTHERN IRELAND BY TENURE 1995 (000S)

TABLE 21: MAJOR HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS IN NORTHERN IRELAND (1997)

TABLE 22: HOUSEBUILDING COMPLETIONS IN GREAT BRITAIN (000'S) 1980 - 1997

CHART 23: HOUSEBUILD COMPLETIONS 1980 - 1997 IN GREAT BRITAIN ('000S)

TABLE 24: UK HOUSEBUILDING STARTS (000'S) 1980 - 1997

CHART 25: UK HOUSEBUILDING STARTS ('000S) 1980-97

TABLE 26: PROPORTION OF TOTAL PRIVATE HOUSEBUILDING STARTS BY REGION 1994-1996

TABLE 27: PROPORTION OF TOTAL HOUSING ASSOCIATION STARTS PER REGION 1994-1996

TABLE 28: BY REGION, percent OF ALL HOUSEBUILDING STARTS MADE BY HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS.

TABLE 29: HOUSES COMPLETED FOR HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS BY NO. BEDROOMS IN ENGLAND 1995 - 1997.

TABLE 30: FLATS COMPLETED FOR HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS BY NO. BEDROOMS IN ENGLAND 1995 - 1997

TABLE 31: THE MIX OF HOUSES AND FLATS BY HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS IN ENGLAND 1995-1997

TABLE 32: HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS IN ENGLAND WITH MORE THAN 1,000 UNITS IN DEVELOPMENT

TABLE 33: PROPORTION OF BUDGET SPENT ON NEW BUILD IN 1997/1998

TABLE 34: TREND OBSERVED IN NEW BUILD IN THE LAST THREE YEARS

TABLE 35: OPINIONS TO TREND IN NEW BUILD OVER NEXT THREE YEARS

TABLE 36: RENOVATION WORK COMPLETED FOR HOUSING ASSOCIATION IN ENGLAND 1992-1996

TABLE 37: LEVEL OF CENTRALISATION IN THE SPECIFICATION PROCESS

CHART 38: THE PROPORTION OF HOUSING ASSOCIATION OPERATING LISTS OF PREFERRED SUPPLIERS, 1998

TABLE 39: THE SPECIFICATION PROCESS FOR REFURBISHMENT AND NEW BUILDS

TABLE 40: RESPONSIBILITIES FOR NEW BUILDS AND REFURBISHMENT

TABLE 41: RELATIVE IMPORTANCE OF SPECIFICATION CRITERIA

TABLE 42: IMPORTANCE OF PERFORMANCE STANDARDS TO THE SPECIFICATION PROCESS (5 = VERY IMPORTANT)

TABLE 43: IMPORTANCE OF QUALITY TO THE SPECIFICATION PROCESS

TABLE 44: IMPORTANCE OF PRICE ON THE SPECIFICATION PROCESS

TABLE 45: IMPORTANCE OF MAINTENANCE COSTS ON THE SPECIFICATION PROCESS

TABLE 46: IMPORTANCE OF BRAND/KNOWN MANUFACTURER ON THE SPECIFICATION PROCESS

TABLE 47: IMPORTANCE OF APPEARANCE/AESTHETICS IN THE SPECIFICATION PROCESS

TABLE 48: MAIN PURCHASER OF MATERIALS FOR NEW BUILD

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The concept of Housing Associations evolved primarily in the 19th Century when philanthropists founded charitable trusts to provide homes at affordable rents. Over the last 20 years their role has expanded rapidly, with more than 1 million homes now under Housing Association management.

By 1997, around 5 percent of properties in the UK were under Housing Association management. This figure has risen steadily over the last few years and will continue to rise in the short-medium term. Growth has been based on a combination of transfer of ownership from Local Authorities, Government bodies and private organisations, and more recently by new build activity.

In the early-mid 1990's the volumes of new build properties increased to 35,000-40,000 units per annum and represented around 20 percent of all new housebuilding activity in the UK. Since 1995 the output of new build has fallen to around 30,000 units per annum which currently equates to around 15 percent of new housebuilding activity.

At present there are approximately 2,000 registered Housing Associations in the UK, though most have fewer than 300 homes under management. In England, in 1997 the largest 235 associations each operate with over 2,500 homes in management. In 1995, fewer than 100 associations were managing more than 2,500 dwellings, highlighting the growth in the size of Housing Associations and the increased relative sizes of the largest associations.

The largest associations are North British (38,000), Anchor (30,000) and Home (26,000) who control about 8 percent of the market. Since 1995 they have all achieved good levels of growth with 36 percent, 20 percent and 8 percent increases respectively.

North British are also the largest association in terms of property under development, with more than 3,000 units. Other leading developers include, Fosseway, Hyde, Orbit, Sovereign, Sanctuary and Bromford Carinthia all with more than 1,500 units currently under development. Since 1995, the list of leading developers has changed significantly, with reductions in the numbers of units in development and changes in the associations carrying out large scale development work.

Most associations commit around 75 percent of their budgets to new development, the remainder being spent on refurbishment and maintenance. When specifying materials for new build projects, Housing Associations prefer to choose quality, durable, maintenance-free components to reduce refurbishment and maintenance costs in the longer term.

The specification process for new building projects differs from the private sector in many ways. Performance standards, for example, are different reflecting the special needs of their customer base. Special emphasis is placed on maintenance, heating and ventilation, security, safety and environmental issues. In some cases, standards of building by Housing Associations are being carried over to the private sector.

Levels of Government grants currently average at 56 percent of development expenditure, though the trend has been toward reducing Government support of social housing as a whole. The change of Government looks set to reverse this trend by giving additional funding to Local Authorities to distribute between building and maintenance projects and partnerships with Housing Associations.

Additional political changes affecting Housing Associations will be the formation of the Scottish Parliament and the Welsh Assembly and the democratisation of the Housing Corporation. The medium term future of Housing Associations is secure with continued growth from new building developments and amalgamation of smaller associations with their larger counterparts.

This comprehensive report represents a detailed assessment of the market, reviewing major trends, key factors influencing developments and future prospects for the sector. Analysis is both quantitative and qualitative, based on our substantial experience of the building and home improvement markets.

Text © 1998 AMA Research

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