Luxury flats left empty as second-home rule backfires
The apartment block in Salcombe has fallen foul of a rule preventing the purchase of newly built property by people whose principal homes are elsewhere.
The Planning Inspectorate ruled this week that developer Valentine London can only sell its four new luxury apartments in the Devon town to people planning to live there full-time.
The developer had appealed against South Hams district council's 2019 rule that any new homes in the coastal resort town must be primary residences.
The firm said this strict condition made its £1.2 million flats 'unsellable' – but its appeal against the rule was rejected by the national planning body on Monday.
Andrew Manning-Smith, 51, and his wife Samantha, 49 – Valentine London's directors – claim the rule has robbed them of potential buyers for their new luxury apartment block overlooking the town's harbour.
The flats appear to have become a white elephant, despite efforts to market them off-plan, after completion or at 25 per cent under market value.
Cheltenham-based Valentine London has claimed this is because buyers see it as a risky investment, fearing the principal-residence rule would make it hard to sell the flats on.
No buyers in three-and-a-half years
Mr Manning-Smith has previously denied the council's claims that his firm knew about the restriction when the homes were built.
He said: 'When we applied for pre-planning and planning the primary occupancy restriction did not exist. It also did not exist in the statement of common ground agreed with the council a month before the appeal.
'We have applied to remove the condition as the apartments are unsaleable at a proper price with the condition, which we told the inspector on the original appeal, and highly unlikely to be mortgageable.
'Despite numerous reductions in price and offers of incentives, the apartments have failed to find a buyer in the last three-and-a-half years due to the condition on this site.'
But local officials have defended the rule, saying it was vital to help preserve the character of the Devon town, which has come to be nicknamed Chelsea-on-Sea for its popularity with second-home owning Londoners.
Jasper Evans, Salcombe's mayor, said: 'Salcombe's housing stock is under pressure from the number of second homes which is absolutely not a criticism of second-home owners.
'They have invested massively in the town and we are tremendously appreciative of everything they contribute. To be clear – we welcome everyone who loves Salcombe.
'In Salcombe, the permanent-resident population has been in decline. We don't want that to continue.
'We want young people to stay in the town, work here, be part of the local economy and community.
'The town's year-round vitality depends on its permanent residents of all ages. So, the policy is that if you buy a new house, it has to be your main home. That doesn't apply to houses already built.'
Mr Evans welcomed the planning inspector's decision, saying: 'It was very important for us and I am sure other communities who adopted the principal residence condition will be equally pleased with this decision.'.
Average house price up to £826,000
South Hams district council brought in the rule in its 2019 Salcombe Neighbourhood Plan over claims second homes were driving locals out of the area.
The council said it passed the rule as a way of trying to increase the availability of property for local families in a town where the average house price has risen to £826,000.
Permission for the four flats in Salcombe and a commercial unit at ground level below them – known as the Brewery Quay scheme – was granted in 2020.
The council says the developers were aware of the primary residence restriction throughout.
Valentine London managed to sell the commercial space to a marine business, but with most local people seeking to get on the housing ladder unable to pay the asking price, Mr and Mrs Manning-Street's waterside apartments have remained unsold.
Companies House records show that a receiver has been appointed by creditors to take control of Valentine London's assets to recover outstanding debts.
Mrs Manning-Smith was a finalist in Business Woman of the Year 2006 and was invited to Buckingham Palace to meet the late Queen in 2007 as one of the 100 Most Influential Women In Business.
She was asked to speak at the Conservative Party Conference by David Cameron, then prime minister, in 2009 and was put forward to stand as a candidate for the party in London's Richmond Park constituency in 2007, missing out to Zac Goldsmith.
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