Five new homes built for sale in Jaywick Sands will be kept by Tendring District Council (TDC).
The council completed construction of ten new homes off Lotus Way last year, as part of its commitments to both build new council housing and drive forward improvements in housing quality in the area.
Originally five homes were to be kept for council tenants, and the properties were occupied upon completion, while the other five were to be sold to local people or key workers local to the area with a 20% discount.
While there was interest in buying the properties, they were largely from people ineligible under the Local Lettings and Sales Plan adopted for the homes in order to protect them for the benefit of local residents.
As a result, TDC’s Cabinet agreed today (Friday, 17 June) to keep the homes within the council’s stock for its own tenants, subject to agreement from Homes England, who provided part of the funding to build them.
Paul Honeywood, TDC Cabinet Member for Housing and with Special Responsibility for Jaywick Sands, said the homes would be welcomed by tenants on the council waiting list.
“Tenant feedback from the first five properties we have let has been really positive, reflecting the high quality of build we put in place, and so I am sure the new five tenants will be equally happy,” Paul said.
“Our over-riding principle for these new homes is that they served the needs of local people – so while we looked to sell these to local people and key workers in our district, having them available to rent for our tenants is still a success.
“The new-builds also represent what is possible in Jaywick Sands.”
