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27 March 2007
New Affordable Homes In Watford
An exclusive development of 11 new affordable homes was officially opened in Watford on Friday March 23 by the Elected Mayor of Watford Dorothy Thornhill and the Head of Housing in Watford Lesley Palumbo.
The new homes form part of a larger private development constructed by Belstone Homes. The development, known as Verdana Court, is located in Whippendell Road near to the junction with Rickmansworth Road.
Hightown Praetorian & Churches Housing Association (HPCHA) manages 11 of the new homes. Five apartments are available for rent and six apartments have been sold under the Shared Ownership scheme, also known as HomeBuy.
Shared Ownership is an alternative to renting a home or buying a property outright. It helps people who want to buy a home of their own but cannot afford to do so.
Through Shared Ownership it is possible to buy a share in a property (50%) and pay rent on the remaining share. The total costs of rent and mortgage payments will be lower than the cost of buying the same home outright. In the future you have the option to buy additional shares.
Dorothy Thornhill, Elected Mayor of Watford, said: “I would like to congratulate Hightown Praetorian & Churches Housing Association and the builders, Belstone Homes Ltd, on this fantastic development. This is a great example of partnership working which has delivered affordable homes for local people in the area.
“Watford is an attractive place for people to work, live and socialise and as a result of this property prices have increased dramatically. It is essential that we continue to build affordable housing in the town and we hope to work with Hightown Praetorian & Churches Housing Association again in the near future.”
The apartments benefit from good-sized bedrooms, double glazing, fitted bathroom and kitchen and secure parking. They also benefit from being in a fantastic location with excellent travel links.
Lesley Palumbo, Head of Housing at Watford Borough Council, added: “I am delighted with this development of affordable houses. This site is of good quality and I am pleased that local people who have a real housing need have an opportunity to get on to the property ladder. I am looking forward to seeing further Hightown Praetorian & Churches Housing Association development in the Watford area.”
Development at the new site, which used to be a Printers factory, started in May 2005 and was completed in February 2007.
HPCHA Chief Executive David Bogle added: “I would like to thank everyone who has worked with us in delivering these affordable homes.
“This new development is just 11 homes from 621 affordable homes that we are building in Hertfordshire over the next three years as part of the Housing Corporation's 2006-2008 programme.
“It is an exciting time for housing and we aim to play a major role in providing high quality affordable housing for the local community who have a housing need. The demand for the Shared Ownership apartments has been enormous with all six units being sold before completion. We are currently working with another developer to deliver 34 affordable one and two bed apartments in Vicarage Road which are expected to be completed in early 2008.”
If you are interested in any of our new developments or would like more information on the Shared Ownership scheme please contact Hightown Praetorian & Churches Housing Association on 01442 292381.
Photo caption: L to R - David Bogle (Chief Exec - Hightown), Dorothy Thornhill (Elected Mayor) & Lesley Palumbo (Head of Housing - Watford Borough Council).
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