Key workers struggling to enter the property market

31-Jul-2006


Affordability for first time buyers including policemen, teachers, firemen and ambulance workers, has declined by over 40 per cent in the past five years, according to new research from Halifax.

London and the south-west are the least affordable areas for key workers, with the average home in Greater London costing over nine times the income of a nurse.

Martin Ellis, chief economist at Halifax, said: "Key workers have been hit hard by the strength of the property market over the past five years.

"Now it is difficult for key workers to buy the average house not only in the south of England but also in significant parts of the Midlands, northern England, Wales and Scotland."

Key worker homes are "critical to the smooth functioning of life in our cities and towns," he added.

He went on to urge the government to continue to develop ways of helping key workers onto the property ladder.

Property is most affordable in Scotland, where the average house price is 3.4 times the average police officer's salary and 3.7 times that of a teacher's.

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