First-time buyers 'priced out of countryside'
23-Jul-2008
First-time buyers are being priced out of the nation's villages because of the gap between
property prices and local incomes.
That is the conclusion of a report drawn up by Liberal Democrat MP Matthew Taylor, in which he warns that such locations will become "exclusive enclaves of the elderly and wealthy" if more
affordable housing is not granted planning permission.
Mr Taylor's research also reveals that wages for people working in rural communities are now £4,655 lower than the national average, while
first-time buyer properties cost £16,000 more.
He is calling for strictly-controlled
housing developments to be built and sold to key workers in rural areas.
"Endless bland housing estates crammed on to the edge of towns are often unattractive - they fail to deliver local services, shops or open spaces," he observed.
"The residents end up driving into town for everything they need, clogging up the roads. No wonder local people so often oppose them."
Housing minister Caroline Flint has responded to the report by pledging to "look closely" at its proposals and publish a response.
FirstRungNow.com - how to buy a house, from finding your first flat or first house, first time buyer mortgages, shared ownership, buying with friends, gifted deposit, part buy part rent - all a first time buyer could possibly need.
Quality of mortgages 'not the problem' in housing market NHF calls for 'rethink' on affordable housing construction
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