Newcastle city council claims to be the first local authority in the UK to launch the rent-to-buy scheme allowing tenants to save for a deposit to get on the property ladder.

A development called Reestones Place saw the launch of the scheme earlier this year.   

The two, three and four-bedroom new build homes in Kenton were offered at a rent of 80 per cent of market value on a specially designed five year fixed tenancy to allow residents to save the deposit they need to secure a mortgage and buy the home at the end of the rental period. 

The properties are effectively regarded as privately let and are managed by Your Homes Newcastle, the city council’s housing arms-length management organisation. 

A council spokeswoman says: “Housing is a priority for the council and we’re always looking for new and innovative ways of delivering a range of housing options in the city.

“We know that the dream of buying a home can seem out of reach for some people so when Homes England funding became available for local authorities to deliver Rent to Buy housing we were confident that we would be able to help some of those people to realise their dreams.  

“We knew that, as the first council to build Rent to Buy homes, other local authorities would be watching to see how the scheme would work.  Now, with residents settling in to their new homes, I think we can safely say that it has been a fantastic success and that Rent to Buy is definitely a model we would consider again in the future if the opportunity comes along.”  

A spokesman for developer Tolent adds: “Our successful partnership with the council and wider team is delivering upwards of 450 new homes across Newcastle, and we look forward to strengthening this relationship as we move forward into 2021 and beyond.”