Report calls for more affordable housing

12-Oct-2005

A growing number of young people are unable to get on the first rung of the property ladder and need more affordable housing schemes, according to a new report.

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Released by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, the report identifies a new trend, whereby aspiring homeowners are unable to afford to buy their own home but also do not qualify for government assistance.

Caught in this "intermediate housing gap", many potential property buyers are forced to continue renting or living with their parents in an attempt to save up enough money for a deposit.

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The foundation has urged local authorities to take action to reduce this housing gap and provide more first timer properties and affordable homes schemes across the UK.

"If large numbers of households are not to miss out on the benefits of home ownership, then much greater efforts - and probably much more public money - will be needed to give them a break," explained Lord Richard Best, director of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

The government has reasserted its commitment to tackling the problem and has set out plans for new shared equity plans, which are aimed at helping more first time buyers to get on the property ladder.

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