Upon returning to the UK, Wilde founded Merlion Housing Association in 1990, a specialist provider of privately funded affordable housing. He created and developed a shared equity model for the provision of Housing Association Grant free affordable housing and has been instrumental in this form of tenure becoming a key tool of affordable housing policy in the United Kingdom. The Association has provided homes to nearly 2,000 individuals and families in housing need since its incorporation and was the only privately funded Housing Association to receive funds under the Government's £200 million Starter Homes Initiative in 2001 aimed at providing key worker homes for, amongst others, teachers, nurses and the police.