New housing minister -

The first thing to mention is that a housing minister has finally been appointed, although given the time it’s taken to make this nomination suggests housing is a low priority in May’s political campaign. Gavin Barwell, Croydon based MP, has been nominated and whilst he openly posted on the popular social media network Twitter, “Look forward to working with councils, housing associations, developers and investors to ensure we build the homes people need and deserve.”, he has been met with some criticism. Some of the policies he has allegedly voted against include reforms to the housebuilding industry and against clearer information on agent fees and longer tenancies. Twice since the referendum Lewis has confirmed his commitment to construct 200,000 starter homes before the end of the parliament in 2020.

Brexit -

May was a well-known advocate of the Remain camp before the referendum but since a 52% win in favour of Brexit has stated she will honour the surprising outcome and handle the Brexit negotiations. Despite a strong debate from anti-Brexit campaigners, there is very little evidence on the backlash of leaving the EU, it is also still unknown how the relationship between the EU and the UK will be affected and with the remain campaign being so strong in Scotland, it is likely that we could see another referendum in the near future.

Her outlook on housing so far -

It’s still unclear as to what May will be doing for the housing sector, although the issues have arisen in some of her latest speeches. In her speech in Birmingham she spoke of the housing deficit and about helping young people to get on the housing ladder. She said “unless we deal with the housing deficit, we will see house prices keep on rising. Young people will find it even harder to afford their own home. The divide between those who inherit wealth and those who don’t will become more pronounced. And more and more of the country’s money will go into expensive housing instead of more productive investments that generate more economic growth.”

How do you think Theresa May’s leadership will affect the property sector? Let us know in the comments.