Changing the Housing Landscape Through Data-Driven Decision-Making
A significant number of “homes within the commercial property market are “hidden” – but they can be revealed using the power of data and an understanding of recently revised permitted development rights. So says Simon Davis, CEO of Nimbus, the property intelligence platform co-founded with his brother Paul.
The housing crisis – a national issue
One of the biggest challenges faced across the country is the housing crisis and it’s an issue the entire industry needs to come together to solve. For example, according to a recent report, Birmingham will require 127,600 new homes within the next 20 years, the highest of any English local authority.
Utilising available property stock to better suit today’s requirements is a more time-efficient solution to housing sector challenges and recent changes to use class legislation were devised for exactly this reason. In 2021, Class MA was introduced permitting a change of use from Class E commercial buildings to residential without requiring planning permission. With the added sustainability benefits of repurposing rather than building new it’s important the industry explores this avenue further.
Additionally, consumer habits are changing in relation to town centres. Due to the proximity of shops and services, both older and younger generations are choosing to live nearer to the central business district. This reduces the pressure on them to take on the financial burden of car ownership; a trend borne out by the reduced number of driving tests being taken and the overall reduction in car ownership. This also reduces emissions, assisting the Government in its attempt to achieve its net-zero targets, which local authorities in major cities encourage with congestion charges.
Re-imagining spaces
With housing challenges for two distinct generational groups, we need to work together to look at solutions. It is not simply about building new homes wherever new land becomes available – we have to match supply to where people want to live. Building new stock is prohibitively expensive and requires land making it a restrictive option in city centres. However, there is another way – converting underutilised properties in those areas into residential dwellings.
Older people want to hold onto their independence as long as possible – which is in everybody’s best interests. Therefore, placing retirement villages in town centres rather than out of town means we’re not only positively impacting the housing crisis, but we’re creating homes where the target demographic wants to live, while also affording more independence for those later into life. The availability of shops, and now, more so than ever, in-town healthcare facilities, make towns and city centres an ideal place for this demographic.
Likewise, the same can be said for the younger generation – we also need to create homes suitable for their needs in these city centre areas. The best way to tackle both of these challenges is to review the current stock, utilise legislation available and change the use class to develop desirable flats and apartments in sustainable locations.
The power of PropTech
It’s circumstances such as these where PropTech comes into its own – and Nimbus is a powerful tool in the armoury. Drawing on their engineering background and expertise in the industry, Simon and Paul Davis were driven to find a way to bring the power of data to bear to solve property-industry problems. The result was Nimbus, an easy-to-use online intelligence service which saves property professionals, (such as investors, developers, surveyors and commercial occupiers) significant amounts of time while finding them new opportunities that match their requirements.
It does this by combining an easy-to-use mapping interface with comprehensive data drawn from more than 1,000 reliable sources right to the fingertips of property professionals. Today, the likes of M&S, Lidl, Colliers and JLL, along with many others, utilise Nimbus to improve their investment insights and make better-informed decisions.
When evaluating the opportunities presented in a change of use from commercial to residential, Nimbus provides the data property developers need to ensure these schemes have longevity and commercial viability. Some of the features Nimbus clients benefit from in these situations include:
- Average residential value. An overview of the current average sales value of residential properties in a given area, to ensure any future developments are priced correctly in the market and deliver a suitable return on investment.
- Average value growth. An overview of residential properties in an area to ensure values are trending upward.
- Commercial comparables. Provides current commercial values for vacant properties so developers know what an acceptable bid is for a Class E building.
- Residential comparables. Enables developers to forecast the price residential units would be worth once completed.
- Residential availability. An awareness of the current market to support developers in evaluating future residential sales or lettings.
Having this extensive information at your fingertips means that as an investor or developer, your property decisions are backed by accurate data. This not only makes your workflow more efficient and more likely to deliver the return you are looking for, but it also means you can deliver essential housing, in the right locations, more quickly – while reducing the likelihood of mid-project development failure.
As we see then, data and PropTech are the keys to unlocking the significant housing challenges faced both in the West Midlands and UK-wide. We need the industry to make good use of tools such as Nimbus so they can find and assess the otherwise “hidden” locations that are there to make the progress needed on the housing crisis that impacts so many.
For more information, or to arrange a demo of Nimbus, please visit: https://www.nimbusmaps.co.uk/