News release

Award winning property developer Urban Splash and national regeneration agency English Partnership are offering people in Seedley and Langworthy a great opportunity to buy their first home at Chimney Pot Park in Langworthy through an innovative new government backed scheme.

Urban Splash is initially offering its upside down terraced houses through the First Time Buyers Initiative (FTBI), which is organised by English Partnerships, to people living in the local area.

“Urban Splash is delighted to be able to offer people living in the Seedley and Langworthy area priority for our Chimney Pot Park houses through the new scheme to first time buyers,” said Nicola Wallis, associate director, Urban Splash.  “Chimney Pot Park has really captured the attention and imagination of so many people, the houses look fantastic and we’ve even got the first residents living in them now.”

English Partnerships’ First-Time Buyers Initiative is part of the Government’s Homebuy scheme to help 120,000 people into home ownership through a range of affordable options.  It enables eligible first time buyers to contribute a minimum 50 per cent towards the full purchase price of a new home through an affordable mortgage, with English Partnerships contributing the rest.

First time buyers can then ‘staircase’ to repay English Partnerships contribution at any time, and after three years, will start to pay a fee to English Partnerships based on the contribution made.  When owners sell their FTBI home, they will repay all of the assistance from a share of the total sale proceeds.  So, if the FTBI assistance was a 25% contribution, the repayment will be 25% of the total value when it is sold.

Urban Splash has sent an information leaflet explaining the scheme and how to apply, to 2000 residents in Seedley and Langworthy.  Local residents have until Saturday 9 June 2007 to complete their application.  In the summer Urban Splash will release the houses for sale to local residents for a full week before they are made available to people from outside the area.

The application process is carried out by Plumlife, the organisation appointed by the government to administrate FTBI for Chimney Pot Park on its behalf. 

“If you live in the Seedley and Langworthy area and are a first time buyer, we want to make sure you have priority to buy in Chimney Pot Park, so it is important you complete the application on Plumlife’s website,” said Nicola Wallis. “If you miss 9 June deadline, don’t worry, you can still apply but you won’t be able to buy a house in the priority release.”

Here are the steps people need to take to see if they are eligible to buy a Chimney Pot Park house through FTBI:

1. Register their interest in Chimney Pot Park by visiting www.chimneypotpark.co.uk

2. Then visit www.plumlife.co.uk.  Plumlife will make sure people are genuine first time buyers and have the necessary finances in place to be able to take part in the scheme.  There is an application form and full instructions on the Plumlife website.  Plumlife will inform people if their application has been successful prior to the houses going on sale this summer.

3. Urban Splash will be opening its two show houses at Chimney Pot Park from 11am – 6pm Monday 4 June – Saturday 9 June; anyone who has applied or is thinking of applying is welcome to come along.  The Urban Splash sales team together with mortgage advisors, solicitors and Plumlife will all be on hand to help explain all the technical bits too.

Lisa Westerman, Sales Manager at Plumlife said, “Many first time buyers are really struggling to afford a property in the area they live in and this scheme, like all the schemes we offer, is designed specifically to help them onto the property ladder.  To be eligible for this FTBI scheme applicants must be first time buyers and unable to buy a property outright.  Our website and our sales team will be able to provide more information and advice.”

Urban Splash has received housing market renewal funding from the Manchester Salford Pathfinder for the Chimney Pot Park scheme.  Urban Splash is working in partnership with Salford City Council and national regeneration agency English Partnerships on the scheme, designed by architects shedkm which sees the traditional terraced house literally turned upside down.

Urban Splash is on site at the development transforming the Victorian terraced houses located on Laburnum Street, Ash Street, Reservoir Street, Field Street, Wall Street and parts of Fir Street, Alder Street and Jubilee Street.

Chimney Pot Park was launched for sale to the general public in April 2006, Urban Splash experienced its most successful sales to date with all 108 houses purchased.

Each house has two bedrooms on the ground floor with the main living spaces located on the first floor.  Purchasers can choose between having their kitchen or lounge on a new mezzanine level, which slots into the roof space.

Urban Splash is retaining the fronts of the houses and the streets which are so familiar to everyone, but at the rear of the houses the back alleyways are gone.  Instead, a balcony, leading onto a terrace has been created at first floor level. 

Underneath the new terrace, Urban Splash is providing secure car parking which together with some street parking is available to purchase at additional cost.  The first houses are complete and people have moved in.

English Partnerships is the government’s national regeneration agency delivering high quality, sustainable growth in England.  It does this by developing its portfolio of strategic projects and acting as the government’s advisor on brownfield land.  It also ensures that surplus public sector assets are used to support wider government objectives, especially those contained in the Sustainable Communities Plan.  English Partnerships helps create communities where people can afford to live and want to live, information on projects and programmes can be found at www.englishpartnerships.co.uk

English Partnerships and the Housing Corporation are working with the Department for Communities and Local Government to establish the proposed new national housing and regeneration agency, Communities England.

Plumlife, part of Great Places Housing Group, is a not-for-profit company that specialises in shared ownership and low cost home ownership schemes. Based in Didsbury, Manchester the company has helped over 800 couples, families and individuals to own their own property and offers shared ownership, New Build HomeBuy and Open Market HomeBuy schemes in areas across the North West.  Plumlife has been appointed by The Housing Corporation as the ‘HomeBuy Agent’ for Greater Manchester and Lancashire.  It provides advice and information on all the HomeBuy schemes offered by all the housing associations in the region, runs an online database of properties and coordinates the application system; providing a one stop shop for first time buyers in Greater Manchester and Lancashire.  For further information visit www.plumlife.co.uk