Speaking at the Conservative Party conference, communities secretary Sajid Javid, and chancellor Philip Hammond said the scheme could deliver an extra 15,000 homes by 2020. At the same conference, the chancellor also announced £3bn in borrowing to create a Home Builders Fund, which will give loans to housebuilders to construct a further 25,500 homes by 2020.

Sir Edward Lister, the chairman of the Homes and Communities Agency, speaking to Property Week, said: “It’s about us going to a housebuilder and instead of expecting the normal build-out rate of 50 units a year, we’ll say: ‘We want you to build 500 in one go and what we’ll do is guarantee to take them off you if you can’t find a buyer.’”

The government is hoping to use the construction scheme to allay any concerns housebuilders may have about building homes they cannot sell. Any homes bought by the government in this way would be sold on the open market to either the private rented sector or registered social landlords.

•   The evolution of title insurance
•   Business as usual for mortgage borrowing
•   Tipping point

The scheme is without doubt a positive move to get the housing market moving again. Melanie Leech, chief executive of the British Property Federation noted that: “Plans to use surplus public land to build homes faster and changes to planning rules to help build on brownfield land are both very welcome news, particularly for the build-to-rent sector. Purpose-built development mostly takes place on brownfield land, and therefore anything that helps with planning will be welcomed with open arms by our sector.”

Strict criteria are likely to be applied when releasing funding, with brownfield sites clearly being prioritised. Typically, such sites are likely to be afflicted by historic, restrictive covenants and planning issues. The threat of ransom from a third party with reserved rights, as well as the possibility of a nuisance claim from those most affected by a large-scale development are very real and are best dealt with through bespoke title insurance.

Similarly, where government funding is being provided to private entities, there is always the risk of a procedural challenge – in this context judicial review insurance is a sensible solution. Such insurance can help to cover potential financial losses, including abortive costs of works, delay costs, as well as increasing lending costs during any judicial review period. Planning decisions are open to challenge for up to six weeks after permission has been granted and suitable insurance can allow building work to commence without having to wait for any appeal period to expire.

And it’s not just third-party claims that can be an issue. On any new-build development plot sales can raise the spectre of a claim being brought by an individual purchaser. The cost and time expenditure involved in dealing with such claims make tailored title insurance very worthwhile in these circumstances.

Titlesolv is the trading name of London & European Title Insurance Services Ltd authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.