UTB unveils £250m development finance fund with Homes England

The five-year pact will support small and medium-sized builders with loans between £1m and £10m at up to 70 per cent loan to gross development Value (LTGDV).

Homes England said the Housing Accelerator Fund will improve access to finance offered to smaller builders and drive the continued diversification of the housing market over the coming years.

Applications are being accepted from today and prospective borrowers should contact UTB.

UTB executive director Noel Meredith said SME housebuilders have a vital role to play in delivering the UK’s housing needs.

“This is an exciting new partnership with Homes England which will make a real difference to both long established and newly formed development companies requiring competitive funding and the long-term support of a knowledgeable and experienced specialist lender,” he said.

“This alliance will help to reinvigorate and increase diversity in the SME housebuilding sector, and boost housing supply in areas under the greatest affordability pressures.”

Homes England chief investment officer Gordon More said it would help smaller builders get on as well as improving the lending landscape for SMEs by driving competition in the market, improving choice and encouraging innovation.

Housing minister Christopher Pincher added: “It is a top priority for this Government to build the homes this country needs and it is vital for our economic recovery that we support as many as possible within the house-building industry to deliver these homes.”