9:02am Saturday 26th April 2008
THE Swedish Ambassador visited a groundbreaking Ikea-style housing development in the region yesterday.
Staffan Carlsson was given a tour of the 93- home St James Village, in Felling, Gateshead, which is nearly ready for its first residents.
The BoKlok houses are Scandinavian-style timber framed properties and are aimed at families earning up to £35,000 a year.
The prefabricated homes were pioneered in Sweden by furniture giant Ikea and construction firm Skanska.
In the UK, property company Live Smart@ Home has an exclusive licence to build them.
They are designed to have an excellent ecohomes rating.
Some of the homes at St James Village will be sold outright, others sold on shared ownership deals and others rented.
The event was Mr Carlsson's first visit to the North-East.
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