Were it not for the magnitude of Brexit holding the nation's attention captive, the news would be dominated by the government's attempts to address a much more domestic concern – building.
Given the drive for more new homes, modern methods of construction should be pushing at an open door.However, offsite manufacturers have had to invest considerable energy to satisfy stakeholders in house-building.
Planning authorities' requirements have meant modular homes are now largely indistinguishable externally to traditional homes. Warranties are available from organisations such as NHBC.
Niche consultancies are coming into existence to overcome lingering concerns. Steven Humphrey of In 2 Mortgages, a mortgage and insurance brokerage specifically seeking to identify products which can be applied to offsite manufactured homes, tells us that lenders are actively monitoring the modular build market.
Given the higher cost of the superstructure of modular built homes, which brings evident benefits for a home-buyer such as greater energy efficiency, lenders' valuers should hopefully be on board too.
If planners, warranty providers, lenders and valuers are all satisfied with offsite built homes, there should be no reason why selling such a home should be any more complicated than selling a traditionally built home.
As an international legal business, DWF acts in the delivery of homes at all stages, from land supply to the sale of plots to house-buyers. The breadth of our sector expertise also means that we deal with both the residential and non-residential aspects of mixed use schemes, on which there is an increasing focus in the UK.
DWF is therefore well placed to ensure that stakeholders are aware of the advantages of offsite manufacturing and talk through any potential concerns and pitfalls where modern methods of construction are used to bring a scheme forward, whether it be a landowner (including public bodies delivering regeneration), developers, or funders looking to inject cash.
For more information and to find out how DWF could help through our legal and connected businesses, please contact phil.dunn@dwf.law
