Will The Housing Market Ever be Affordable To First Time Buyers?
The last decade has seen a massive increase in the cost of UK homes and even though prices are under some pressure at the moment, many first time buyers are still affectively locked out of the market because of high prices. This begs the question as to whether first time buyers of the future will be able to acquire their homes in the traditional manner or will they need assistance from the authorities?
This is a very tricky situation because as much as the authorities' claim they want to help, their hands are very much tied behind their backs. The recent announcement of a rent and buy scheme hit the headlines but what exactly does it entail and will first time buyers actually be any better off in the long term?
The main problem is that due to an unbalanced supply and demand situation in the UK for many decades, even in times of trouble there are still less new homes being built than overall demand in the market place. This has ensured that bricks and mortar continue to be the prime investment for many in the UK, but there is a real danger of locking out first time buyers forever with wage inflation only a fraction of the recent rise in house prices.
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