Croydon residents will be the first in line to get their hands on completed homes built by Brick by Brick – a Croydon Council-owned developer set up three years ago.

A pair of developments in Upper Norwood will be the first to be completed by the company.

On Friday (March 15) 87 homes will go on sale – and for the first two months they will be offered exclusively to Croydon residents.

In the Aukland Rise and Sylvan Road development, there will be 57 one and one and two-bedroom flats, with 19 available through shared ownership.

And the Ravensdale and Rushden development will be made up of 30 one and two-bedroom flats and two and three-bedroom houses.

The houses will be sold for private purchase and Help to Buy will be available for the flats.

How much will it cost to buy one?

Prices start at £295,000 for a one bedroom flat, £450,000 for a two-bedroom apartment and £587,500 for a three-bedroom terrace house.

And by using Help to Buy, a deposit could be from £18,500 for a one-bed, £24,975 for a two-bed and up to £29,375 for a three-bedroom house.  

The shared ownership options means new homeowners would have a 25% share of the property costing from £73,750 for a one-bed and £112,500 for a two-bed.

Residents will be able to take a look at what is on offer at Brick by Brick’s new sales suite at 62 George Street.

The company recently moved to the site from the council offices at a cost of £11m a year.

“It is a great moment”

Chief executive of Brick by Brick, Colm Lacey, said all the homes have been ‘thoughtfully designed’ with a focus on quality.

“This is a great moment for Brick by Brick, and for Croydon,” he said.

“Since we launched the business in 2016 our team has worked tirelessly on establishing the company, identifying sites, developing schemes, submitting them for planning permission, and then starting construction.

“We are now close to completing our first homes and it is incredibly exciting to be able to make them available to Croydon residents on an exclusive basis. This is part of Brick by Brick’s commitment to deliver much needed new and affordable homes for the people of Croydon.

“All our homes are thoughtfully designed by fresh and interesting architects and have been built with a resolute focus on quality. This is ingrained in what we do and how we operate. We can’t wait to complete our first sales and give some Croydon people keys to their wonderful new homes.”

What’s next?

The  next homes expected to go on sale are in Thornton Heath and Old Coulsdon.

Flora Court near Thornton Heath Station will offer up 24 shared ownership homes.

While Windmill Place in the South of the borough will be a mix of 24 private sale and Help to Buy flats.

Brick by Brick currently has over 1,200 homes “actively in development” as well as more sites in the pipeline.

The company says it will be able to deliver 500 homes a year with 50% affordable.

Who are Brick by Brick?

The company was set up by the council in 2016 and so far it has had more than 40 planning applications approved.

Sites which are set to be redeveloped by the council-owned developer tend to be old garages, car parks, vacant buildings or disused land.

It has come under fire from some residents living near proposed sites, who feel they are too dense or have been given planning permission too easily.

The council sells land as well as lends money to Brick by Brick, which then applies to the council for planning permission to build on it.

Profits from the sale and rent of affordable homes will come back to the council as “un-ringfenced” cash which can be used by the council how it chooses.