Yours from £850 per month: Apartments go on the market in transformed Basildon tower block

Trafford House, in Cherrydown East, was formerly Ford’s European headquarters, but had fallen into disrepair amid uncertainty about its future.

The block, spanning 310,000 square metres, has now been revamped to provide 396 one and two-bedroom apartments for rent.

But potential tenants will not be able to move in on the cheap, with prices starting from £850 per month.

The apartments are being marketed as ideal for rail commuters and professionals.

Howard Lester, director of Balgores Property Group, which is offering the flats for rent, said: "Trafford House is in a fantastic location and is an ideal place to live for London commuters.

“Rent prices start at £850 per calendar month and it is considerably cheaper than accommodation closer to the City, with access to Fenchurch Street in just 35 minutes.

“Whilst the accommodation boasts a price tag not reflected by central London prices, the apartments have been finished to a very high spec.

“The developers have brought London quality accommodation to Basildon.”

Trafford House once employed 830 staff at the peak of Ford’s operations there, but there were only 200 workers there when it closed in 2010.

Proposals to redevelop the block into flats had stalled several times since, but construction workers finally began stripping and refitting the interior of the building in February.

Redevelopment of the eight-storey block was completed this autumn.

The new apartments are all fitted with kitchen appliances, including dishwashers and microwaves, as well as fitted wardrobes.

Mr Lester added: “Trafford House has so much to offer tenants and really brings something new and exciting to Basildon.

“Because of its perfect location, we expect the apartments to be very popular, not only with commuters but local people, working in Basildon or at the hospital.”

For more information about the apartments, visit balgoresproperty.co.uk

APARTMENTS WILL DO 'VERY LITTLE' TO SOLVE HOUSING SHORTAGE

THE high-end apartments will do nothing to meet the needs of existing Basildon residents, critics of the scheme have warned.

With monthly rents starting at £850, it is likely the Trafford House flats will appeal more to out-of-town commuters than existing residents.

But Basildon Council leader Phil Turner believes the new apartments will create gaps in the housing market elsewhere and help boost town centre trade.

A survey of south Essex, carried out in 2013, estimates 300 new affordable homes need to be built in Basildon every year to meet demand.

Geoff Williams, Liberal Democrat councillor for Nethermayne, said: “It is going to do very little to alleviate the housing shortage in Basildon for Basildon people.

“It strikes me as quite a high rent, although it is a central location, and it is not going to do much for local families.”

Refit: Trafford House being gutted as workers started on the block in February

New guidelines issued by Basildon Council in September have said 36 per cent of properties on major developments should be affordable.

Previously, the council’s target had been between 15 and 30 per cent.

Tory councillor Mr Turner is waiting to see how popular the new apartments will be, given their price.

He said: “It has got to be a good move to bring a derelict office building back into use, but it does seem a little bit steep.

“I am mindful there are people out there wanting affordable homes, but it might create some space in the market where housing is freed up for those who can’t afford the Trafford House prices.

“We will watch with eagerness to see what the take-up is, but we can’t prevent market forces.

“Let’s hope it frees up homes somewhere along the way.”

Affordable housing agreements between developers and the council often see money put forward for homes off-site.

An agreement between Basildon Council and Redrow Homes for the 725-home Dry Street development, for instance, will see only 36 affordable homes built on-site, with money put forward for a further 36 elsewhere.

Mr Williams added: “We never get to know where these other locations are going to be.

“Developers and the council will say there will be contributions for affordable housing elsewhere, but we never find out where that is.”

Workers removed internal walls and recycled metal materials as part of the revamp

HOPES FOR TOWN CENTRE RETAIL BOOST

THE new apartments will help bring money into Basildon town centre and encourage a wider variety of retailers to the area, council leader Phil Turner believes.

The council hopes to unveil revived plans for a “leisure square” of shops and restaurants in East Square in the new year.

Regeneration plans for the town also include moving the market to St Martin’s Square and a new campus for South Essex College.

Mr Turner said: “What we are trying to do is create a vibrant economy and getting more people into the town is part of that.

“If we get this amount of extra people on our doorstep, it should create opportunity, with more disposable income which can be spent in the town.

“Whether affordable housing is part of the Trafford House scheme or not, it is good for people in this town.”

FROM SEVENTIES BUSINESS HEADQUARTERS TO ROUGH SLEEPER SQUAT

TRAFFORD House was built in 1974 and served as the administrative heart of Ford’s Basildon empire.

But the amount of staff working there, once more than 800, had dwindled to only 200 when the motoring giants finally moved out in 2010.

In January 2011, developer Colonade secured planning permission to convert Trafford House into 359 flats, shops and restaurants.

But the building was put back on the market in October that year, before it was finally sold on to Criterion Capital in July 2014.

New plans for flats were rejected last August, because no parking provision was included, but a revised application was passed last November.

Before building work began, the fire service found more than 100 rough sleepers squatting in the building, which had been plagued by drug addicts, metal thieves and trespassers.

But the occupants were said to have moved out peacefully before builders moved in, with security being tightened up.

A team of 100 workers moved on-site in February, stripping out 50 giant skips of rubbish, building new internal walls and converting the block into apartments.