The affordable housing that's unaffordable

Available for over a year

John Waite investigates why some new housing developments have been given planning permission without any affordable housing. Councils set a target for what percentage of new build homes in their area should be affordable to people on lower incomes and will only grant planning permission for a scheme on condition that the developers include a proportion of low-cost homes. But following a change in the law in April 2013, some of Britain's biggest house-builders have told councils that they are no longer able to meet their obligation because it unfairly cuts their profit margins. Face the Facts hears the allegation that some councils have been presented with out-of-date calculations that make a housing development appear less profitable than it actually is.