WORCESTERSHIRE would get a cash injection of almost £24million if more affordable homes were built to tackle the housing crisis, the National Housing Federation has revealed.
More than 500 full-time jobs would also be created or sustained in the county but experts have warned a total of 634 houses need to be constructed every year to keep pace with demand.
The West Midlands as a whole would get a shot in the arm of £263million if it met the property quota but last year’s total of just 1,790 is less than a third of the 7,000 needed.
Coun Melanie Baker, responsible for planning and housing at Malvern Hills District Council, said: “I agree with the National Housing Association we need more affordable homes and that is why they are the heart of the SWDP strategy, along with infrastructure, economic growth and jobs.
“But the actual building of affordable homes is in the hands of the developers and we need them to get on with it otherwise we will fail a generation for whom having their own home is becoming an ever more distant dream.”
Across the country there is a demand for 78,500 affordable units annually which would see £3.6billion pumped into the economy and support more than 71,000 full-time jobs.
Gemma Duggan, West Midlands manager at the National Housing Federation, said: “There are simply not enough affordable homes being built in the West Midlands.
“People across the region are struggling to find the homes they need at a price they can afford.
“The numbers show that new homes are more than roofs over heads, they bring wealth to local areas and improve job prospects, that is why we are asking politicians commit to ending the housing crisis by building more homes now.”
