Everyone can see the opportunity to reuse existing derelict/vacant buildings; unfortunately, due to the legal complexities involved, there needs to be additional solutions to the housing crisis.
One way to drive down the deficit is to start building nice but smaller, sustainable houses in sustainable locations.
In the new age of minimalism, it can be argued that having less space and less stuff can create room in your life for the more important things.
What can be built?
Small, Eco cabins can be built using a footprint in the region of 35-60 m² (375-645 sq/ft)
This may not be a solution for large families, but I’m sure that many young couples would like the opportunity to live in a well-designed, modern, efficient home in a location surrounded by transport links and good amenities.
It goes without saying that such houses need to be well thought out and designed in a manner that provides
- Plenty of sunlight
- Good ceiling heights
- Suitable storage
- Outdoor amenity
How does this create an opportunity?
The ability to develop smaller homes creates an opportunity to develop infill plots that aren’t currently considered capable of development
This in turn
- Creates more homes in sustainable, urban locations.
- Provides more development opportunities for SME developers/builders and, in turn creates jobs and opportunities for everyone involved in the housing and construction sector
- Creates an unexpected windfall for landowners of land not currently capable of development.
What are the main constraints?
- Planning. The main planning concerns would be attaining minimum size standards and ensuring that eco homes can accord with the planning requirements for ensuring new buildings produce the desired size, scale and character.
- Commercial Viability. It’s no secret that build costs have gone through the roof, but that is also the case with the rapidly rising costs of development finance. Given the extremely fast construction process (mostly off-site), the reduced costs of financing such developments are significant.
These units will of course only work commercially in certain areas, but the cost to build these units vs. the sales values per sq/ft means that there is certainly an opportunity for developers that are able to plan whilst building quickly and efficiently.
