Liverpool joined the program of houses sales for the symbolic price of ₤1 (€1,18). The program aims to revitalize the depressed outskirts of British cities and improve the situation with buildings in bad repair, according to ee24.com citing "Rossiyskaya Gazeta".
48-year-old cabbie Jayalal Madde has become the first owner of ₤1 home in Liverpool. Now he will have to spend a lot of money to repair the building by city standards in one year. Only then Mr Madde and his family will settle in their new home, which is located in the south of city, close to the River Mersey.
Authorities' initiative has been enthusiastically received by the local population. More than a thousand of people participated in the competition for the right to buy the house . Only 19 of them have matched stringent criteria and were selected. A candidate for the program must have a stable source of income, earning at least £18,000 (€21,000 ) per year, have money to repair the building (approximately €41,000), live in Liverpool constantly and be prepared to live in this house for five years.
If the program has success, city officials will hold a tender to sale thousands of ₤1 houses.
Portal ee24.com has already wrote that Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, was the first British city to participate in "₤1 home" program.