Call to turn pubs into social housing

Licensed agents have suggested that creating social housing from disused pubs and reviewing the Government loans scheme are just two ways the Government could kick-start the pub property market.

A straw poll of licensed property agents carried out by the MA highlighted that there was willingness to enter the pub market, but what's lacking is access to cash. That's according to Robin Mence, managing director at Sidney Philips, Paul Davey, managing director at Dunham, Davey & Clugston, Paul Tallentyre, director at Davis Coffer Lyons and Stephen Taylor, managing director at Guy Simmonds.

Tallentyre said banks were not lending, but rather, "sitting on their hands".

He added: "Government could buy disused pubs, and create social housing from them. This would help pubcos to move tail-end pubs that are no longer viable, and give them cash to reinvest in their existing pubs, and even buy more sites."

Mence said: "There is commercial funding out there — 60% can be easily obtained, but buyers need a 40% deposit, and people can't sell their houses. If the Government could stimulate the residential market, this would stimulate the pub market."

Taylor said: "It's very difficult to get a loan on a leasehold business without added security at the moment."

Davey said: "The market's being held back by the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme. While this should be available to the pub market, applicants are not being welcomed by banks under that scheme."

He added that while local authorities considered pubs a valuable community amenity, central Government did not, and as a consequence did not encourage the support these businesses' needs.

Graeme Bunn, director at Fleurets, said the Government "should give a rebate on the excise duty that pubs paid within the past 12 months, subject to it being reinvested in the pub".