Levelling Up Home Building Fund - development finance
If you're building homes for sale or rent, we can provide finance from £250,000 to cover development costs.
Applies to England
What the fund supports
We want to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and innovative developers and housebuilders to build more homes more quickly and to create great communities.
We also want to encourage innovation, both in the kind of homes that are built and the way they are delivered. Examples of innovative projects you might need funding for could include:
- serviced plots for custom and self-builders
- off-site manufacturing
- new entrants to the market
- community-led housing projects
- groups of small firms working together to deliver larger sites
If you need loan funding for infrastructure and enabling costs to prepare land for homes, you can also apply for an infrastructure loan from the Home Building Fund.
Eligibility for finance
You may be eligible for finance if:
- your project is financially viable
- you are planning on building or refurbishing five or more homes on a site in England (refurbished units must be uninhabitable at the point when you apply)
- your project would stall, or progress much less quickly, without this finance
- you are a UK-registered corporate entity or limited liability partnership (LLP)
When we make a finance offer, you will normally need to have a controlling interest in the land and a clear route to achieving planning consent.
We cannot fund projects where:
- there are new leasehold houses
- leasehold flats are charged more than a peppercorn (i.e. nominal) ground rent
How the fund works
The fund predominantly provides development loan finance but also offers limited financial support to establish investment platforms and attract new investment.
The Levelling Up Homes Building Fund offers finance from £250,000. We will also consider smaller loans for innovative housing solutions.
Loans
All our lending needs appropriate security and loans are typically secured against property assets.
The Levelling Up Home Building Fund offers finance from £250,000. We will also consider smaller loans for innovative housing solutions.
Note that:
- typical terms are up to five years
- interest is payable at transparent, commercial, pre-agreed variable rates
- sales income from the homes sold can be recycled to minimise the loan request
- we will consider subordinated lending
- we will discuss eligible costs with each applicant - these depend on the type of funding requested
Talk to us if you have a viable scheme that offers innovative housing solutions - such as modern methods of construction (MMC) or custom build - and needs development funding outside of the parameters above.
Other investments
The fund can deploy its equity and loan allocation to support the establishment and growth of platforms to enable the delivery of homes at scale and attract additional investment.
We enter in to lending alliances where we utilise the origination and servicing platforms of our partners, enabling us to get our capital out to SME developers faster and also allowing the partner to take on more lending risk in this sector.
We also invest in funds for institutional investors and partnerships which bring together new capital sources and delivery partners.
Examples of these are:
- we are an investor in the Housing Growth Partnership, which provides equity capital directly for residential development projects
- we have made cornerstone investments in funds raised for institutional investment including M&G Shared Ownership Fund and PRS REIT
- we have created a lending platform with Octopus Real Estate called the Greener Homes Alliance, which seeks to encourage potential borrowers to introduce sustainable elements in to their schemes. Discounts on interest rates are available dependent on the EPC rating of the homes
- we have partnered with Invest and Fund, who provide loans to micro and SME developers, and will support applications below the Levelling Up Home Building Fund’s minimum of five units
To discuss new opportunities please contact us
If the eligibility criteria change
The Levelling Up Home Building Fund’s eligibility criteria may be updated from time to time to reflect government priorities. Should changes to the eligibility criteria be required we would not be obliged to consult with you about them.
How we prioritise applications
As a government-backed initiative, the Levelling Up Home Building Fund reflects wider government priorities. We are looking for, and will approve, applications based on:
- the best value for money for the taxpayer
- the greatest potential for early delivery
- projects that support policy priorities such as:
- strengthening the SME developer market
- greener homes that support net zero carbon
- diversification and innovation in the housing market
Funding decisions
Any funding decision we make to you under the fund may be changed or withdrawn by us until we have completed due diligence and signed agreements with you. We advise you not to make business decisions assuming your application will be successful - you should wait until we have signed agreements with you.
Homes England has responsibility for managing the fund and our lending decisions are final.
How to apply
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Contact us online through our enquiry form, or by email, phone or post.
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If you meet our criteria, one of our investments team will help you apply.
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We allocate you a dedicated transaction manager.
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You receive our funding decision and confirmed price.
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We complete due diligence and sign the agreement.
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You build the homes.
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You repay the investment.
You will need to tell us about your development plans and business finances as part of our decision-making process.
Contact us by email
Contact us by phone
Telephone: 0300 1234 500 (option 3)
Contact us by post
Levelling Up Home Building Fund
Homes England
10 South Colonnade
Canary Wharf
London
E14 4PU
Related information
‘Know your customer’ guidance
Documents we may need to see about you and your company.
Costs of a loan
We will apply interest rates to the loan at commercial rates. We will also charge you an arrangement fee.
Read how we use credit scoring to assess your creditworthiness and collateralisation.
Updates to this page
Published 2 February 2022Last updated 3 October 2024 + show all updates
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Removed information on funding partnerships that are no longer live or being updated. Postal address for Levelling Up Home Building Fund has been changed.
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First published.