New research highlights the growing problem of affordability in the housing market, with almost one-quarter (24%) of people unable to afford a property in their local area.
With house prices increasing at twice the increase in wages, the research shows that a further two-thirds (65%) believe that all or most local housing is no longer affordable.
The new data by Cicero Research looked at the views of Brits on the government’s efforts to solve the housing crisis.
The issue of affordability in the South East is highest, with 37% of people citing problems. In contrast, only 4% of people in Northern Ireland said they could not afford any of the properties in the area where they lived.
Mark Twigg, executive director of Cicero Research, said: “Affordability is a huge barrier for millions of Britons, but the regional variations from the research highlight the need to consider the issues from a local perspective.
“What people want to see in the South East is not the same as people in Wales or the North East. Fixing the country’s housing crisis boils down to building more homes, which means allowing local authorities to release more land for development.”
Over 3.5 million UK adults (7%) said they had experienced difficulties in finding the type of housing they were looking for locally. There was a concentration of these among 18-34 year- olds (11%), emphasising the need to create more starter homes and homes for younger families.
However, there was a similar concentration among those aged 35-54, suggesting many existing home owners were also finding making the leap into their next home difficult.
Four-in-10 of people believe that building more social housing is the most effective way for the government to ease pressure on first-time-buyers or people looking to move home.
This was followed by building more housing for elderly to help them downsize (36%). People would also like to see the government encourage more house building, but not on greenbelt land (34%).
Land banking is also a contentious issue with one-fifth (20%) of respondents supporting measures to force property developers to use their land to build houses.
“Many people would also like to see local authorities building more social housing in order to reverse the impact of Right to Buy over the past 30 years. We need to recognise that this is about building the right types of homes, in the right areas and takes into consideration what people can ultimately afford. Simply lending more and more money when people who are already feeling financially stretched isn’t a long-term solution,” said Twigg.
Daniel Attia, CEO of estate agent YOPA, said: “I have lost count of the number of times there has been discussion about the housing crisis in the last 10-15 years. It’s time for less talk and more action. These findings confirm what we already know – millions of people across the UK cannot afford housing. We must increase supply and do it fast.”
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