Home ownership has plummeted among young families, with 25 to 34-year-olds being priced out of Brighton and Hove, according to the latest analysis by a think-tank.
Research by the Resolution Foundation think-tank said that the problem was worst in outer London over the past 20 years.
In Brighton and Hove there was a 46 percentage point fall in the proportion of young people who own their own homes from 1994 to 2016.
This is greater than the average of 42 per cent for the south east outside London – and the outer London drop of 63 points.
The halving of home ownership among young families in Brighton and Hove has left the proportion at below 40 per cent.
The Resolution Foundation said: “Such a seismic shift in home ownership puts the current younger generation in a very different position from that of the baby boomers currently leaving the workforce.
“These stark falls, along with a decline in social housing, mean that many more young families are now living in the private rented sector, struggling to save for a housing deposit at the same time as paying rent.”
The think-tank added: “With support for housebuilding rising, including among older voters, both main parties have wisely made building more homes a key part of their pitch to the electorate.
“The Conservatives have reiterated their 2015 commitment to a million more homes by the end of 2020, adding an additional target of another half a million by the end of 2022.
“Labour have pledged to invest to build over a million new homes, with at least 100,000 council and housing association homes being built each year by 2022.
“The foundation argues that while these targets are encouraging, there is little information in the manifestos on how such ambitious plans will be achieved.
“It notes that housing stock in England rose by less than 200,000 units in 2015-16 and more concrete plans are required before voters can be confident that the next government will reach these ambitious targets.”
In Brighton and Hove the Labour council administration has promised to build 1,000 affordable homes by the next local elections in 2019.
All three political parties – Labour, Conservative and Green – supported the signing of a joint venture deal with the Hyde housing association last year.
But the first sites have not yet been publicly identified let alone been the subject of a planning application.
Lindsay Judge, senior policy analyst at the Resolution Foundation, said: “London house prices always dominate the headlines but with all eyes on the capital we’re missing the bigger picture.
“From Bristol to East Anglia and up to West Yorkshire, large swathes of young families across the country simply cannot afford to buy their own home.
“This has implications for their living standards in the here and now but also in the future when their children grow up and they approach retirement without this key asset to draw upon in old age.
“The manifestos show clear intent from all the main parties to ensure home ownership is a possibility for more young families.
“But these pledges need a hefty dose of reality as they depend on vastly increasing the rate at which we are currently building in the UK.”
1000 affordable homes by 2019 election (2 May) on sites that have not even been identified yet. That is less than 24 months away. Impossible. 13,000 homes by 2030 – 1000/year for the next 13 years. Impossible. Look at how many Planning Applications have been turned down in the last year for fringe development. BHCC is deluded.
That’s Labour for you locally!
Don’t worry, vote Conservative, for the market will magically provide!
No mention of the colossal amount of homes converted to HMO’s for students?
In a capitalist view of the world, through the eyes of a major housebuilder; in order to maximize their profits from the house building sector, the 4 major housebuilders in the UK would need to rely on having a stranglehold on the supply of the number of new homes built each year, wouldn’t you agree?
Homes are our most loved and hated commodity on our small island, which is the topic of conversation around the world.
Influencing the number of new homes built each year would ultimately increase the homebuilders share price, assets, house prices and profits, in a deliberate upward trajectory. Which is a profit-making strategy from a business model that has stood the test of time.
Do we here at Liquid Properties think the major housebuilders or the government are going to supply more homes than the level of demand? It doesn’t make financial or economic sense for either party, so regardless of what party is in power, we are on track to expect business, as usual, unless of course, the government does things differently.
Even since the start of this century, the UK has averaged 200,000 new homes more a year net, which gives the team here at Liquid Properties in Brighton doubt on any parties pledge to increase the number of homes they propose to build.
We support Brighton and Hove’s promise of 1000 new affordable homes by 2019 and believe the joint venture deal with Hyde housing association is also a very positive move for the City.