A HOUSING association says it is planning to build more than 100 affordable properties for homes-starved residents in West Devon — but warn the process will not happen overnight.

Councillors were told by chief executive of LiveWest Paul Crawford that finding sites to build the homes could be a challenge.

Borough councillors have sent appeals out to parishes asking them to identify any potential sites where affordable homes could be built, with Mr Crawford indicating 115 will be constructed in the next three to four years.

West Devon Borough Council has declared a housing crisis because of a lack of homes for local residents and a rapidly diminishing private rented accommodation market.

That market has shrunk since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic two years ago as landlords opted to sell their rented properties to people from urban areas snapping them up so they could work from remotely from home rather than commute.

Property owners who converted their properties to holiday lets were also keen to cash in on ‘staycations’, where tourists who did want to go abroad after Covid-19 lockdown restrictions were lifted visited UK destinations instead.

Councillors have been told on some occasions there has been no property available for rent in either Tavistock or Okehampton.

Residents hoping to get on the housing ladder face an uphill struggle, with the average wage in West Devon around £20,000 per year, while average house prices have topped the £300,000 mark.

LiveWest’s chief operations officer Suzanne Brown told the council overview and scrutiny committee that there had been more than 1,000 applications from people in West Devon for homes.

And Mr Crawford admitted it would be challenging to find sites for new homes and added: ‘If we found the land today, it (a scheme) would take three to four years to complete, so it’s not a quick fix.’

But he ruled out multi-storey buildings after the Grenfell Tower fire disaster five years, involving flats containing combustible cladding.

Councillors are concerned that not enough affordable homes are being built in more rural areas to enable people who were born there to remain in the area.

Council officers are carrying out housing needs surveys in areas such as Princetown and Brentor, with the results expected soon.

Committee chair Cllr Mandy Ewings urged anyone with land which may be suitable for development to come forward, particularly in rural areas, to enable housing plans to move forward.