Liverpool Council expects to dispose of houses which have become the subject of legal action later this month.
Dozens of properties were acquired by Liverpool Council on Tunstall Street, L7, between 2018 and 2020 as part of the Housing Market Renewal Initiative (HMRI). Following the cancellation of that project, the local authority decided to refurbish the houses and dispose of them for around £3m.
New documents released ahead of the council’s strategic development and housing committee on Thursday have confirmed the homes expect to be fully disposed by the end of this month. In an update to the committee, cabinet member, Cllr Sarah Doyle, said the authority has refurbished 25 derelict terraced properties “complementing the investment made by home owners through the Homes for £1 scheme in the surrounding streets.”
READ MORE: Thomas Cashman in tears as he tells murder trial 'I'm not a killer, I'm a dad'
Cllr Doyle said: “Following a marketing exercise cabinet approved the disposal of the houses to Pine Court. In addition three of the houses are to be leased back by Children’s Social Care to provide ready accessible temporary housing, whilst generating annual budget savings for the council.”
Despite the progress, the local authority has found itself waged into a legal battle with contractor the Flanagan group over the properties. After identifying a “number of defects and outstanding work”, the council did not release funds to the contractor for work undertaken, prompting the Flanagan Group to engage in legal action.
According to a local authority audit report last year, the council did not have the financial or organisational capacity to hold and manage the houses and established that it would be preferred to dispose of them to a registered housing provider with the use restricted to rent to buy to encourage home ownership.
A cabinet meeting in September approved the sale of properties to Pine Court for £3.2m, with three houses to be leased back for use by children’s social care. The recommendation to go with rent to buy provided the best financial offer (based on the bids received, according to the report. It said that in pursuing this option the council “avoided the potential risk of the houses being sold privately and being used for private rent, which there was an over-provision in the area.”
To minimise the risk of overprovision of this type of accommodation it was agreed to reduce the number of houses to be used by children’s social care from four to three and to spread the houses across the terrace blocks. The report detailed how it was further agreed internally and with Pine Court that the council would sell and lease back the houses, with Pine Court responsible for the management and maintenance of the properties.
This approach was described as providing the benefit of maximising the capital receipt from the sale enabling children’s social services to focus on service provision and delivery rather than management and upkeep of the properties. As revealed earlier this year, security arrangements were set up when the houses were handed over using the contractor for the council’s void housing.
The report said that when the houses were handed over following completion, “a number of defects and outstanding work have been identified during the defects liability period.” As these have not been rectified by the appointed contractor, Liverpool Council did not release the retention monies it is holding and the contractor has instigated proceedings against the local authority as a result.
Following the withdrawal of HMRI funding, the properties have stood vacant off Smithdown Road for a number of years.
The countdown has officially started. Join our Eurovision 2023 in Liverpool Facebook group
READ NEXT
Thomas Cashman murder trial resumes as man accused of shooting schoolgirl Olivia Pratt-Korbel
Woman raped in city centre alleyway near nightclub
Passport gang who helped ‘Premier League’ cocaine kingpin evade capture
Dad woke up ‘two weeks later’ after taking usual route to work
Double tragedy for family after son killed in crash
‘I tried H&M’s £13 dupe for Hermes’ £570 sandals and left impressed’
