The Welsh Government has put £24m into loan funding to unlock land for housing in Wales, supporting more than 600 new homes.
The funding is set up to help both social and market housing, letting providers secure land before construction money is available.
Once building funds come in, the loan is repaid and then used again for new projects.
Wales & West Housing got £3m in loan funding to buy land in Grangetown, Cardiff, followed by £10m in grants to build 100 affordable homes for social rent.
Tenants started moving into the Ffordd Yr Haearn site from September 2021, with completion in autumn 2022.
The site offers a mix of homes for families and is close to the city centre.
Cabinet Secretary for Housing and Local Government Jayne Bryant said: “I’m incredibly proud of how our Land for Housing scheme is making a real difference to people’s lives across Wales.
“When we invest in schemes like this, we’re not simply buying land – we’re investing in brighter futures for hundreds of people.
“I was so pleased to meet the residents at Ffordd yr Haearn and see firsthand how this funding has created not just houses, but genuine communities where people can put down roots.”
Bryant added: “The scheme has also been instrumental in helping to build a strong pipeline of land sites, many of which contribute to our ambitious goal of 20,000 new low carbon social homes during this Senedd term.”
Stuart Epps, executive director for finance, assets and development at Wales & West Housing, said: “Ffordd Yr Haearn was the first scheme of affordable homes for rent where we applied for loan funding under the Land for Housing scheme.
“At Ffordd Yr Haearn we’ve been able to provide 100 homes to almost 350 residents, giving families a firm foundation to build healthy, happy lives.
“At the time, in 2018, the loan allowed us to buy the site and design our development to meet the needs of the Grangetown community.”
Epps added: “One of the key things the community needed was safe and secure family homes with gardens, for life.
“So, we have been able to provide 52 houses with outdoor space as well as 48 flats.
“We’ve used this funding for a number of housing developments across Wales in recent years.
“Having these loans from Welsh Government is beneficial as it allows housing providers to buy land, freeing up other money that we can invest in building and planning more homes.”
