James Riding
@jamesriding.bsky.social
Living Markets Editor at Inside Housing | Book reviews in The Times | Press Awards 30 Under 30 2024 | james.riding@oceanmedia.co.uk
I'm noticing an interesting trend of councils buying up new-build homes from housebuilders to use for social housing. With demand from first-time buyers so low, it makes sense that councils could get some good deals. They just need the money to buy them!
www.mylondon.news/news/north-l...
www.mylondon.news/news/north-l...
Council submits bid to buy 140 new homes off developer for social rent
Harrow Council said it was given an opportunity to buy them at the last minute and didn't want to miss out, so called an urgent meeting to approve the potential purchase
www.mylondon.news
November 6, 2025 at 11:23 AM
I'm noticing an interesting trend of councils buying up new-build homes from housebuilders to use for social housing. With demand from first-time buyers so low, it makes sense that councils could get some good deals. They just need the money to buy them!
www.mylondon.news/news/north-l...
www.mylondon.news/news/north-l...
Reposted by James Riding
New homes: even if you build them, there’s no one to buy them on.ft.com/3Levumr | opinion
New homes: even if you build them, there’s no one to buy them
We’re often told housing demand exceeds supply — so why are new homes struggling to be built and bought?
on.ft.com
October 30, 2025 at 5:37 AM
New homes: even if you build them, there’s no one to buy them on.ft.com/3Levumr | opinion
A tower block completed in 2022 has to undergo a full refurbishment to fix damp, mould and fire safety defects
Amid criticism of the Building Safety Regulator holding up development, it's so crucial to remember why we need to drive up building standards
www.mylondon.news/news/south-l...
Amid criticism of the Building Safety Regulator holding up development, it's so crucial to remember why we need to drive up building standards
www.mylondon.news/news/south-l...
London's newbuild scandal as blocks develop issues within a few years
The Fold was completed in 2022, but just three years later, its owners are forcing all residents to leave in order to carry out a full refurbishment of the mould-ridden building - and it's a symptom o...
www.mylondon.news
October 28, 2025 at 9:38 AM
A tower block completed in 2022 has to undergo a full refurbishment to fix damp, mould and fire safety defects
Amid criticism of the Building Safety Regulator holding up development, it's so crucial to remember why we need to drive up building standards
www.mylondon.news/news/south-l...
Amid criticism of the Building Safety Regulator holding up development, it's so crucial to remember why we need to drive up building standards
www.mylondon.news/news/south-l...
I'm extremely pleased to be shortlisted for a British Journalism Award alongside some truly top-tier talent
October 23, 2025 at 2:04 PM
I'm extremely pleased to be shortlisted for a British Journalism Award alongside some truly top-tier talent
The government and Sadiq Khan have announced an emergency package for developers after shockingly low housebuilding figures in London
Affordable housing target lowered from 35% to 20%, PLUS government grant for developers
More on how we got here:
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/lond...
Affordable housing target lowered from 35% to 20%, PLUS government grant for developers
More on how we got here:
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/lond...
London’s housebuilding meltdown: what happens next?
Shockingly poor housebuilding figures emerged from London over the summer. James Riding speaks to developers and London’s deputy mayor Tom Copley to find out where we go from here.
www.insidehousing.co.uk
October 23, 2025 at 1:46 PM
The government and Sadiq Khan have announced an emergency package for developers after shockingly low housebuilding figures in London
Affordable housing target lowered from 35% to 20%, PLUS government grant for developers
More on how we got here:
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/lond...
Affordable housing target lowered from 35% to 20%, PLUS government grant for developers
More on how we got here:
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/lond...
New research shared with Inside Housing today calls for US-style tax credits to raise £18.83bn a year for social rent homes. That’s the level of public subsidy needed to build 90,000 social rent homes a year and make a huge dent in the housing crisis
www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/public-...
www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/public-...
Public-private coalition calls for tax credits to build 90,000 social homes a year
A coalition of private and public sector parties has called for the government to use tax credits to fund 90,000 new social rent homes a year.
www.insidehousing.co.uk
October 21, 2025 at 7:11 AM
New research shared with Inside Housing today calls for US-style tax credits to raise £18.83bn a year for social rent homes. That’s the level of public subsidy needed to build 90,000 social rent homes a year and make a huge dent in the housing crisis
www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/public-...
www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/public-...
“Ever since that [act], both the main parties constantly associated the two: that we can’t progress race equality without then also controlling how many immigrants we have in this country"
Fascinating piece in Inside Housing today from @sajeraj.bsky.social
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/60-y...
Fascinating piece in Inside Housing today from @sajeraj.bsky.social
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/60-y...
60 years on: the story of the Race Relations Act 1965
This Black History Month, Inside Housing looks back at the Race Relations Act to consider the legacy of the first anti-racism law in England.
www.insidehousing.co.uk
October 14, 2025 at 4:57 PM
“Ever since that [act], both the main parties constantly associated the two: that we can’t progress race equality without then also controlling how many immigrants we have in this country"
Fascinating piece in Inside Housing today from @sajeraj.bsky.social
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/60-y...
Fascinating piece in Inside Housing today from @sajeraj.bsky.social
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/60-y...
Exclusive: Investment giant M&G has widened its focus from shared ownership to all affordable housing tenures
www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/exclusi...
www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/exclusi...
Exclusive: Investment giant widens focus from shared ownership to all affordable tenures
Investment giant M&G has widened its focus from shared ownership to all affordable housing tenures, Inside Housing can reveal.
www.insidehousing.co.uk
October 2, 2025 at 9:04 AM
Exclusive: Investment giant M&G has widened its focus from shared ownership to all affordable housing tenures
www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/exclusi...
www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/exclusi...
New: Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party will move towards a pro-social housing agenda because so many social renters are considering voting for them, Sir Keir Starmer’s former economic advisor has said
www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/reform-...
www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/reform-...
Reform will move to a pro-social housing agenda, says Starmer’s ex-economic advisor
Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party will move towards a pro-social housing agenda because so many social renters are considering voting for them, Sir Keir Starmer’s former economic advisor has said.
www.insidehousing.co.uk
September 29, 2025 at 3:49 PM
New: Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party will move towards a pro-social housing agenda because so many social renters are considering voting for them, Sir Keir Starmer’s former economic advisor has said
www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/reform-...
www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/reform-...
Reposted by James Riding
Nothing in this acknowledges the economic reality of why many brownfield sites don’t get away as housing: they’re not financially viable unless someone (usually us, in some form) pays for them to be cleaned up and made ready
Almost 1.5m homes could be built on brownfield sites in England, report finds
Almost 1.5m homes could be built on brownfield sites in England, report finds
Exclusive: CPRE study suggests housebuilding targets can be met without encroaching on green belt land
Almost 1.5m new homes could be built on brownfield sites in England to avoid encroaching on green belt and meet the government target for housing growth by the end of this parliament, new figures suggest.
But despite the scale of brownfield land available, developers are pushing to build on green land, including increased housebuilding on and adjacent to areas of outstanding natural beauty. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
September 24, 2025 at 6:38 AM
Nothing in this acknowledges the economic reality of why many brownfield sites don’t get away as housing: they’re not financially viable unless someone (usually us, in some form) pays for them to be cleaned up and made ready
Reposted by James Riding
It's My Party and I'll cry if I want to
September 19, 2025 at 4:43 PM
It's My Party and I'll cry if I want to
Shockingly poor housebuilding figures emerged from London over the summer
Just 2,158 private homes were started in the first half of the year according to Molior: the lowest figure since 2009
I spoke to developers and deputy mayor Tom Copley to find out where we go from here 🧵
Just 2,158 private homes were started in the first half of the year according to Molior: the lowest figure since 2009
I spoke to developers and deputy mayor Tom Copley to find out where we go from here 🧵
September 18, 2025 at 7:56 AM
Shockingly poor housebuilding figures emerged from London over the summer
Just 2,158 private homes were started in the first half of the year according to Molior: the lowest figure since 2009
I spoke to developers and deputy mayor Tom Copley to find out where we go from here 🧵
Just 2,158 private homes were started in the first half of the year according to Molior: the lowest figure since 2009
I spoke to developers and deputy mayor Tom Copley to find out where we go from here 🧵
Does build-to-rent drive up rents in nearby areas? The truth is much more complex, argues Michael Keaveney, director of land and development at Grainger, in Inside Housing today
www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/buil...
www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/buil...
Build-to-rent won't inevitably drive rents up
Commentators have linked build-to-rent to rising rents but the truth is much more complex, writes Michael Keaveney, director of land and development at Grainger.
www.insidehousing.co.uk
September 18, 2025 at 7:19 AM
Does build-to-rent drive up rents in nearby areas? The truth is much more complex, argues Michael Keaveney, director of land and development at Grainger, in Inside Housing today
www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/buil...
www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/buil...
Exclusive: An £800m government scheme to decarbonise social homes has underperformed with less than a third of targeted retrofits completed
www.insidehousing.co.uk/home/just-27...
www.insidehousing.co.uk/home/just-27...
Just 27% of retrofits completed under flagship government decarbonisation scheme
An £800m government scheme to decarbonise social homes has underperformed with less than a third of targeted retrofits completed, Inside Housing can reveal.
www.insidehousing.co.uk
September 17, 2025 at 7:47 AM
Exclusive: An £800m government scheme to decarbonise social homes has underperformed with less than a third of targeted retrofits completed
www.insidehousing.co.uk/home/just-27...
www.insidehousing.co.uk/home/just-27...
Definitely a contender for best list of Alternative Names on a Wikipedia page
September 11, 2025 at 4:18 PM
Definitely a contender for best list of Alternative Names on a Wikipedia page
Reposted by James Riding
“For all his reputation as an elder statesman of solid literary fiction, Ian McEwan’s 50-year career has been characterised by eccentricities and surprising left-turns.”
Me on McEwan’s strangest novel yet, What We Can Know, about poetry, murder and the long view of human development:
Me on McEwan’s strangest novel yet, What We Can Know, about poetry, murder and the long view of human development:
Ian McEwan is back — and he’s had fun with his strangest book yet
The acclaimed writer’s latest novel, What We Can Know, is a literary hotpot of poetry, social history, dementia and murder
www.thetimes.com
September 10, 2025 at 7:05 AM
“For all his reputation as an elder statesman of solid literary fiction, Ian McEwan’s 50-year career has been characterised by eccentricities and surprising left-turns.”
Me on McEwan’s strangest novel yet, What We Can Know, about poetry, murder and the long view of human development:
Me on McEwan’s strangest novel yet, What We Can Know, about poetry, murder and the long view of human development:
William Boyd’s new spy novel is full of JFK conspiracy theories. Who does he think is the most entertaining culprit for the president’s assassination?
Here’s my review for @thetimes.com - link below
Here’s my review for @thetimes.com - link below
September 6, 2025 at 6:48 PM
William Boyd’s new spy novel is full of JFK conspiracy theories. Who does he think is the most entertaining culprit for the president’s assassination?
Here’s my review for @thetimes.com - link below
Here’s my review for @thetimes.com - link below
I reviewed the first ever Fitzcarraldo novel on the Booker Prize longlist: One Boat by Jonathan Buckley, a tale of guilt and grief on the Greek coast.
It’s intermittently absorbing with flourishes of beauty - but it evaporates in the memory.
Link to my Sunday Times piece below
It’s intermittently absorbing with flourishes of beauty - but it evaporates in the memory.
Link to my Sunday Times piece below
August 23, 2025 at 7:55 AM
I reviewed the first ever Fitzcarraldo novel on the Booker Prize longlist: One Boat by Jonathan Buckley, a tale of guilt and grief on the Greek coast.
It’s intermittently absorbing with flourishes of beauty - but it evaporates in the memory.
Link to my Sunday Times piece below
It’s intermittently absorbing with flourishes of beauty - but it evaporates in the memory.
Link to my Sunday Times piece below
Reposted by James Riding
We have a really interesting story today by @jamesriding.bsky.social on a modular factory staffed by prisoners on day release.
This type of project has good evidence that it reduces reoffending. A portion of wages go to a fund to support victims.
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/a-mo...
This type of project has good evidence that it reduces reoffending. A portion of wages go to a fund to support victims.
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/a-mo...
A modular factory where one in three staff are prisoners on day release
On the factory floor of a warehouse in Peterborough, prisoners on day release are helping to make modular homes that will be erected as social housing and temporary accommodation. The project also has...
www.insidehousing.co.uk
August 12, 2025 at 8:16 AM
We have a really interesting story today by @jamesriding.bsky.social on a modular factory staffed by prisoners on day release.
This type of project has good evidence that it reduces reoffending. A portion of wages go to a fund to support victims.
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/a-mo...
This type of project has good evidence that it reduces reoffending. A portion of wages go to a fund to support victims.
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/a-mo...
As a reporter covering housing I find Manchester fascinating. In just 14 years, the city centre population has almost trebled. Meanwhile the number of people on the waiting list for a social home has gone from 0 to 11,500.
My dispatch from the council:
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/skys...
My dispatch from the council:
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/skys...
Skyscrapers and social housing: inside Manchester’s extraordinary housing transformation
James Riding meets Tom Stannard, chief executive of Manchester City Council, and Bev Craig, leader of the council, to discuss build-to-rent, the Building Safety Regulator and affordable housing
www.insidehousing.co.uk
August 7, 2025 at 8:47 AM
As a reporter covering housing I find Manchester fascinating. In just 14 years, the city centre population has almost trebled. Meanwhile the number of people on the waiting list for a social home has gone from 0 to 11,500.
My dispatch from the council:
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/skys...
My dispatch from the council:
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/skys...
Great to see Ben Markovits longlisted for the Booker Prize for his novel The Rest of Our Lives - a slim study of middle-aged ennui set on the US highway.
Here's my review for @thetimes.com
www.thetimes.com/culture/book...
Here's my review for @thetimes.com
www.thetimes.com/culture/book...
How to deal with a midlife crisis — get in a car and keep driving
The Rest of Our Lives by Ben Markovits is the story of a man who escapes his ‘C-minus marriage’ by taking an impromptu road trip across America
www.thetimes.com
July 29, 2025 at 1:35 PM
Great to see Ben Markovits longlisted for the Booker Prize for his novel The Rest of Our Lives - a slim study of middle-aged ennui set on the US highway.
Here's my review for @thetimes.com
www.thetimes.com/culture/book...
Here's my review for @thetimes.com
www.thetimes.com/culture/book...
Reposted by James Riding
Loving this month's cover @insidehousing.bsky.social!
July 23, 2025 at 9:26 AM
Loving this month's cover @insidehousing.bsky.social!
A street in Mayfair where William Blake once lived is being refurbished and turned back into housing - including 11 affordable homes.
I took a look round and spoke to the developers about the “mind-forged manacles” of conservation policy
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/how-...
I took a look round and spoke to the developers about the “mind-forged manacles” of conservation policy
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/how-...
How a deep retrofit project is creating affordable housing again, after 200 years
The Duke of Westminster’s property company is using deep retrofit to turn an 18th-century London street into affordable housing. James Riding visits the project
www.insidehousing.co.uk
July 2, 2025 at 10:27 AM
A street in Mayfair where William Blake once lived is being refurbished and turned back into housing - including 11 affordable homes.
I took a look round and spoke to the developers about the “mind-forged manacles” of conservation policy
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/how-...
I took a look round and spoke to the developers about the “mind-forged manacles” of conservation policy
www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/how-...
The prime minister writes exclusively for Inside Housing today
He discusses the new Affordable Homes Programme and warns “if we don’t build more homes, the consequences will be dire”
www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/sir-...
He discusses the new Affordable Homes Programme and warns “if we don’t build more homes, the consequences will be dire”
www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/sir-...
Sir Keir Starmer exclusive: keeping our housing promises
In an Inside Housing exclusive, prime minister Sir Keir Starmer sets out how his government aims to boost affordable housing and homeownership
www.insidehousing.co.uk
June 23, 2025 at 6:34 AM
The prime minister writes exclusively for Inside Housing today
He discusses the new Affordable Homes Programme and warns “if we don’t build more homes, the consequences will be dire”
www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/sir-...
He discusses the new Affordable Homes Programme and warns “if we don’t build more homes, the consequences will be dire”
www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/sir-...
We have lift-off. The first Inside Housing Living Bulletin has been sent!
To find out why we have widened our gaze to the wider residential market, read my column
www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/a-ne...
To find out why we have widened our gaze to the wider residential market, read my column
www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/a-ne...
A new chapter for Inside Housing
Inside Housing is expanding to cover new sub-sectors of housing. James Riding, living markets editor, explains why
www.insidehousing.co.uk
June 19, 2025 at 11:33 AM
We have lift-off. The first Inside Housing Living Bulletin has been sent!
To find out why we have widened our gaze to the wider residential market, read my column
www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/a-ne...
To find out why we have widened our gaze to the wider residential market, read my column
www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/a-ne...