Despite rises in property values, housing association Origin Group has offered a special low rate of rent for the shared owner occupants of the new, high profile Parkway development.
The seven shared owner apartments are part of a striking development on Parkway in the heart of the highly sought after Camden area of London. The multi-use development comprises 19 new homes for local people who either want to rent, or part-buy a new home, plus a commercial unit on the ground floor, occupied by electronics retailer Maplin.
Parkway was formally opened on Friday, 20 October 2006. It makes a strong visual impact using traditional materials, like terracotta tiles, but also includes modern methods of construction, such as the light gauge steel of the roof. Rok and Origin faced considerable challenges such as a redundant London Underground tunnel and a diagonal sewer, plus the need to negotiate 18 party wall awards.
The value of the cheapest apartment rose from £180,000 to £250,000 between appraisal and the completion of the development. Griffin Homes, which manages Origin Group’s shared ownership operations, reduced the rent percentage on the properties from 2.5 per cent of the unsold equity to 1.8, in order to hold the rent at the same affordable level. This gives long-term affordability to the new home owners.
Purchasers of the £250,000 one-bedroom apartments will pay a total of £765.57 per month, of which £281.25 is rent, and can apply with a minimum income of £27,838. In the open market buyers would need to earn £56,000 to buy a similar property.
Priority was given to existing council and housing association tenants and those on the council waiting list.
Origin Group chief executive Karen Wilson said: “This new development has enabled seven local households to buy their first home at an affordable monthly outlay; which otherwise would be beyond their means. Parkway will also provide essential affordable rented accommodation for 12 local Camden families.”
A total of 16 households have gained a social rented home, 12 in the new development and a further 4 who have moved into the social rented homes freed up by those acquiring the shared ownership apartments.
The site was previously occupied by a single storey pre-fabricated building that did not do justice to its prime location.
The new building incorporates extra sound proofing and acoustically attenuated ventilation, as it is centrally located in the vibrant 24/7 community near Camden Lock. These features were thoroughly tested to make sure that tenants and shared owner occupants will enjoy the central location of the development without experiencing the noise pollution common to such areas.
The Housing Corporation invested £2.1m of the total £7m project cost. Its Deputy Chairman, Shaukat Moledina, was the main guest at the opening, mentioning how this government agency is investing £65m in about 779 Camden homes in 06-08 as part of its role funding new affordable housing and regulating English housing associations.