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24
May 2023
Council set to loan £500,000 to Harrogate housing company
North Yorkshire Council looks set to loan £500,000 to a Harrogate housing company to cover “high expenditure costs”.
Bracewell Homes was set up by Harrogate Borough Council in 2019 but is now fully-owned by North Yorkshire Council following this year's local government shake-up.
It was created to generate a profit for the council and to intervene in Harrogate’s pricey property market by delivering much-needed rental and shared ownership homes at affordable prices.
It is currently marketing two-bed properties at Hughlings Close, Green Hammerton, and two and three-bedroom homes at The Willows on Whinney Lane in Harrogate.
However, the company requires a “drawdown” in order to cover high expenditure going into this financial year.
Council officials said it would cover costs before “high income amounts” are received.
A report due before North Yorkshire Council’s executive on Tuesday will recommend approving the loan.
It says:
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The Stray Ferret asked North Yorkshire Council which sites the loan is designed to pay invoices for and when it expects the sum to be repaid, but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
The move comes as questions have been raised over the performance of Bracewell Homes.
Last year, the company paid no dividends despite the now-defunct borough council budgeting to receive £267,000.
At the time, Paul Foster, who was head of finance at the council, said the company was still “extremely profitable” and that it had continued to sell properties, although at a smaller percentage of shares than expected.
He said:
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