Commentary
VIDEO | How shortening void periods can help solve the housing crisis
It can take weeks for a council or registered provider to get a vacated property ready for its next tenants. Limiting lengthy void periods is one lever the industry can pull to increase the availability of homes, according to Alistair Carruthers, enterprise business development manager at Helpthemove.
A lot is made of the need for new homes to tackle the housing crisis; the government has set a target of 1.5m by the end of this parliament.
However, the impact of delivering homes at scale across the country will be blunted if issues around existing stock are not addressed.
Around 120,000 families are currently on housing waiting lists, yet social homes up and down the country currently sit empty.
This is due, in part, to drawn out void periods between tenancies as a result of utilities like gas, water, and electricity being switched off.
Helpthemove, which offers utility management solutions, acts as the middle man between social landlords and utility providers to significantly reduce void lengths and get properties back to a lettable condition quicker.
“Social housing providers are getting properties back day in day out with no power or debt on the meter,” Carruthers said.
“That needs to be reduced because it increases costs for social landlords and reduces their ability to invest in their properties.”
You can hear Carruthers’ thoughts in the video at the top of this article. The video is also on the Place North YouTube channel.
You can find out more about Helpthemove by visiting helpthemove.co.uk