Today Tuesday 24 March marks the historic signing of a document transferring ownership after 61% of tenants, 3,445 people, voted in favour of the move.
The government promised to write-off £65m of old housing debt if the Salix transfer went ahead.
9,500 tenants were asked to vote on proposals either to transfer their homes from Salford City Council to Salix Homes or for them to remain with Salford City Council.
Over 2,000, 38.6% of the total vote, opposed the move for fear of less secure tenancies and rising rent and repair charges.
Salix Homes, which now becomes a not-for-profit registered provider, has promised to invest a total of £75 million in homes and communities over the next five years.
Salford City Council said it would not have the funding to do the same, leaving one in three homes ‘non-decent’ if the transfer did not go ahead.
The first phase starts in April with 2,200 homes set to undergo improvements, including new kitchens and bathrooms, in the first two years.
By 2020 Salix has promised to upgrade 4,000 homes with new kitchens or bathrooms, 2,000 homes getting new windows and 3,000 getting better heatings systems.
City Mayor Ian Stewart said: “This is a historic day for tenants. We put the proposals before them and they chose to vote in favour of more investment and better homes for themselves and generations to come by transferring ownership of their homes.
“It’s the start of an exciting new future for residents and brings more, much needed investment into quality housing in our booming city.”
Peter Styche, chair of the Salix Homes Board, added: “The transfer of homes from Salford City Council to ourselves marks a pivotal moment in the history of Salix Homes and housing in this great city.
“There’s been a lot of hard work from both employees and tenants to get to this point, and we look forward to continuing on our journey together to creating a housing service in Salford that we can all be proud of.”
Image: (L-R_ Lee Sugden, chief executive at Salix Homes, Salford Mayor Ian Stewart, tenant Barbara Harper and Peter Styche, chair of the Salix Homes Board.
