Thoughts from Harrogate 08

The credit crunch was the biggest talking point of last month's CIH Annual Conference and Exhibition. Whether I spoke to delegates, exhibitors or speakers, everyone was talking about the impact the credit crunch was having on the housing sector.

The most memorable session I attended was with the economists Ian Shepherdson and David Smith, it was fascinating. The one thing I took away from it was that there was no quick fix for the current problems in the housing market and that things were not likely to improve for the next two years. This analysis provides us with some significant challenges, but some opportunities too.

Most of the developers I was speaking to said that they were unlikely to be developing large construction sites with the effect that many Section 106 developments will not be going forward.

Some of the questions that the conference raised for me were: will the government's house building targets be met; will people be able to take up all those new shared ownership products if they are finding it hard to get a mortgage; and will we be in a position where we are developing properties and products that we can't sell.

It is for these reasons amongst others that CIH believes now is the right time to introduce a short-term mortgage rescue scheme in England. Northern Ireland and Wales are already moving down this route. We also believe that a Green Homes target, similar to the Decent Homes target, will support an ailing construction sector, as well as tackling the huge levels of carbon emissions (27%) from our existing housing stock. Reports from the LGA conference this week in Bournemouth suggest that 100,000 people may leave the construction sector because of the downturn in housebuilding.

On the other side of the coin, while house prices and land values continue to reduce there will be opportunities for housing associations to acquire land and sites that they otherwise could not have done.



There is still a great deal of political consensus around housing within all the major political parties, and this is a positive thing. There is also a much broader understanding amongst the wider community that housing is more than just about homes but also about decent schools, employment and leisure opportunities.



Finally, I was delighted that CIH was able to welcome over 40 international visitors from New Zealand, Australia, Belgium, Canada, the USA, South Africa and Nigeria. There was a great deal of exchange and a huge amount of learning going on between people who had rather different backgrounds and experiences but shared very similar goals. It is one of CIH's objectives to unite a global housing community, and it was exciting to see this happening in practice.



I would be interested to hear your impressions of the conference and some of the other issues raised in this blog.