More than 220 people have applied for eight of Mayor James Palmer’s affordable £100,000 homes in Cambridgeshire, exceeding supply by 28 to one.

The Cambridgeshire and Peterborough mayor is now urging more developers to come on board and “step forward” to help deliver more homes.

The combined authority received 228 applications for the eight homes in Fordham, with 147 having the necessary local connections, equivalent to over 5 per cent of the total population, which is 2,712.

Mayor Palmer said: “The £100k Home is the kind of innovative, transformational project that I want to promote as mayor.

“I knew that there was a desperate need for a product like the £100k home to help give local working people a first step on the housing ladder, and the numbers demonstrate that very clearly.

“More than one in 20 people living or working in Fordham applied for and were eligible for a £100K home but currently we only have eight available.

“The Fordham 100K homes could have been filled nearly 20 times over, such is the demand for those who live or work in the village.

“It is clear people want these homes, so we have to deliver for them.

“I am calling upon housing developers across the region to step forward and work with us to deliver more £100K homes that are so desperately needed.

“Get in touch and we will work with you on delivering affordable homes now, that will create a future pipeline of buyers for your properties.”

£100K homes are new-build, 100 per cent-owned, one-bedroom properties which offer the dual benefit of both an affordable deposit and affordable mortgage payments.

They are aimed at giving people who live or work in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough an affordable step on the housing ladder, while enabling them to live to close to where they work.

Rather than their monthly payment disappearing into the bank account of their landlord, those who buy a £100k home own it outright and build their equity as they repay their mortgage.

As the monthly mortgage payment is expected to be lower than the equivalent private rent amount, £100k homeowners also have the chance to save more each month; savings that can go towards the deposit on their next homes, in the open market.

A spokesperson said: “£100K Homes are made available at a discount to their full market value through a legal covenant which stays with the property.

“The next purchaser would also be found through the £100K home scheme, and they would also benefit from the same percentage discount on the open market value of the property the initial buyer received.

“£100K Homes are part of Mayor Palmer’s response to the housing crisis which is seeing many people locked out of the property market and forced to pay expensive private rents or are stuck living at home with parents to save costs.”

The £100K Homes website (www.100khomes.co.uk) was launched earlier this year, allowing people to find out more and register their interest in buying homes when they become available.

Housing developers wanting to know more about the programme are asked to email: 100khomes@cambridgeshirepeterborough-ca.gov.uk