Build To Rent provider's five-point strategy for government backing

Grainger, the UK’s largest residential property owner and manager listed on the London Stock Exchange, has set out an argument to convince Theresa May to reverse David Cameron’s apparent distaste for the private rental sector. 

Helen Gordon, Grainger’s chief executive, has backed a call by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, for a change of emphasis from the new government. 

She particularly wants support for build to rent - her firm, which already has 9,000 homes to rent across the UK, plans to invest a further £1 billion into the rental market through build to rent. 

Gordon says BTR can help the government in five ways:

“One - by increasing housing supply; two - by delivering more quickly than other traditional house-building models; three - through creating new jobs and contributing to town centre regeneration; four - by providing a better deal to customers including more stability; and five - by supporting greater flexibility in the labour market.”

She continues: “We have an ambitious plan to invest over £1 billion by 2020 in high quality, long term rental housing. In order to support us in this ambition and many others with similar plans, the government should recognise the important role we have to play and explicitly support build to rent in its policies.” 

Gordon says practical examples of this help could be executed through ensuring the planning system and regulatory red-tape does not hold back investment, and ensuring large scale investors are not penalised through measures like the three per cent stamp duty surcharge.