Manifesto is defined in the Oxford English Dictionary as a public declaration of policy and aims; a recognition that such documents typically contain a mix of firm proposals and somewhat vague aspirations.
According to YouGov, housing currently sits as the fourth most important political issue facing the country after the big three: economy, health and immigration.
That ranking reflects the scale and number of housing challenges facing the next government. The problems loom large, whether it is keeping the dream of home ownership alive or providing a fit for purpose rental alternative.
Then there is the challenge of increasing housing delivery to meet underlying house need and address an affordability issue that has been magnified over the past two years as interest rates have risen.
On the flip side, however, is the incentive that the delivery of more new homes presents a golden opportunity to give the economy a shot in the arm.
It should be no surprise then that housing takes up quite a lot of space in the manifestos of the main parties. Nor should it come as a shock to find that when you take a deep breath and delve into them you will find a mix of solid commitments and political rhetoric.
Home ownership
Let’s start with home ownership. All parties have aspirations to be its champion. The problem, of course, is that if there were easy fixes they would have been actioned already.
At the heart of the issue is the tension in reducing the deposit needed to get more people on the housing ladder in a way that doesn’t create undue risk for lenders, further inflate house prices or leave borrowers too financially exposed.
The extension of mortgage guarantees, designed to give the banks confidence to lend more at higher LTVs, is low risk. Consequently, it appears in both the Labour and Conservative manifestos. But recent history suggests it is hardly a game changer.
The Conservatives have gone further, with a reimagining of the effective, yet controversial, Help to Buy scheme. Housebuilders, who would be on the books to part fund it, would welcome it with open arms. And we know it has traction with would-be home owners, though protecting their interests is all about the implementation.
The other main Conservative proposal is to offer landlords a capital gains tax break if they sell their investment to their sitting tenant.
Arguably it couldn’t come at a better time for those landlords burnt by the recent increase in mortgage rates or put off by an increasing regulatory burden. But its effectiveness depends, of course, on the financial circumstances of the occupier, given the proposal is time-limited to two years.
In other respects, the manifesto policy cupboard is fairly bare when it comes to getting more people on the housing ladder, though Labour have provided a commitment to give first-time buyers first dibs on new homes.
