S106 §1:100 · vendor

S106 affordable housing calculator (GLA / Three Dragons)

Reviewed by Chartered Planner (MRTPI) and Chartered Surveyor (MRICS) · 2026-06-21
Direct answer · 50 words
The GLA / Three Dragons S106 Affordable Housing Calculator is a free Excel toolkit published by the GLA and adopted across London boroughs. It computes the commuted sum as build cost minus capitalised rent value for each shortfall dwelling. Tenure-split inputs (social rent, London Affordable Rent, shared ownership) drive the per-dwelling output.

What the toolkit is

Free (Excel download, GLA-published). Source: london.gov.uk Affordable Housing & Viability SPG (verified 2026-06-21).

Three Dragons-maintained spreadsheet; still the GLA reference toolkit for commuted-sum calculation across London boroughs.

Commuted-sum mechanic in the toolkit

The per-dwelling commuted sum equals build cost (BCIS-indexed) less the capitalised rent value at the assumed tenure mix. For social-rent shortfalls the capitalised value is lower (longer amortisation, regulated rent), so the commuted sum is higher.

Tenure-split inputs

Default GLA tenure mix is 60% social rent or London Affordable Rent plus 40% shared ownership. Boroughs may adopt local variations; RBKC and Camden carry local-housing-needs evidence that shifts the mix toward social rent.

Named limitations versus full residual

The toolkit isolates the AH commuted sum; it is not a full residual viability appraisal. For viability cases challenging the policy-compliant tariff overall, the toolkit feeds the AH line of a wider Argus Developer or Aprao model.

S106 §1:50 · related

Related

Affordable housingViabilityApraoArgus DeveloperRBKCCamden