Albyn Housing Society has confirmed its intention to develop over 700 'affordable' homes over the next five years.

The Highland house builder will build 500 social rented, 100 mid-market rent and 125 new LIFT shared equity homes.

It will also continue to deliver Help to Buy for the Scottish Government.

In addition, a £3bn pledge by the Scottish National Party to build 50,000 'affordable' homes has been welcomed by Albyn's Chief Executive Calum Macaulay.

By 2020, the housing developer hopes to have over 3,500 social rented homes stretching from Newtonmore to Thurso and Dyke to Applecross.

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Mr Macaulay said: "After more than a few years of very limited development of new homes we are now in a position to build a significant number of desperately needed affordable homes once again. However it will be some time until we are at the level we were in 2008, when we built 350 homes a year.

"It is estimated 1750 new affordable homes are needed across the region, with 7000 people listed on the Highland Housing Register.

"Up until the start of this decade Albyn Housing Society along with other housing associations in the Highlands were important developers, providing homes and supporting many construction jobs. But public sector investment cuts and the tightening of private sector lending meant  it became a struggle to build a fraction of past numbers.

"We are currently planning where in the region we will build, but priority areas are likely to include Inverness, Easter Ross, Badenoch & Strathspey and around Loch Ness."

(LM)