Cambridgeshire mayor candidate wants a 'Local Living Rent' introduced

It would enable people on lower incomes to rent a new affordable home and have an opportunity to purchase in the long term.

Cllr Rod Cantrill, the Liberal Democrat candidate for the elected Mayor for Cambridgeshire & Peterborough has called for the Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority to explore introducing a Local Living Rent.

A significant challenge for young people in the region is the struggle to pay rent or buy a home close to where they work. In Peterborough the average house price is 8 times the average salary while in Cambridge the average home costs almost 17 times the average salary.

As mayor, Cllr Cantrill said he would work with the combined authority to introduce a living rent (Local Living Rent) as part of the £100m Affordable Housing funding that is part of the devolved funding for the region.

Cllr Cantrill said: “I have met so many people across the region over the last few months, who’ve told me that they are struggling to rent or buy a home.

“I strongly believe that a key role of the new devolved Mayor is to drive the delivery of new affordable homes and where needed using new options that have not been considered to date. I believe that the Local Living Rent is such an option.

“The inclusion of the Local Living Rent as part of the new affordable housing offer, enables the rent to be set based on an individual’s income rather than set against the market rent that in areas of the region has no relationship to what many people earn.”

A Local Living Rent product would be similar to the London Living Rent product that sets a rent based on a third of the average (median) joint income in the different areas of London, enabling people on low and middle incomes to rent a new affordable home and have an opportunity to purchase their home in the long term.