The percentage of the population which own their own home has fallen its lowest level in 30 years.
Large cities across England are experiencing a decline in home ownership with the proportion of homeowners in Greater Manchester falling from 72% in April 2003 to 58% in 2016. Research conducted by The Resolution Foundation found that increasing house prices were rendering properties unaffordable for potential buyers.
Incomes Fail to Keep Pace with House Prices
Matthew Whittaker of The Resolution Foundation said:
"What we particularly have seen since 2002-03 is that incomes simply haven't kept pace with house prices, so it's not just that house prices have gone up. We had access to lots of relatively easy credit and the position we're in now is that credit has been turned off. We have this sense now that house prices have become detached from people's earnings and we no longer have the route through 100% mortgages and the like for getting on to the housing ladder."
The Fall in Buyers
The government’s own housing survey showed that the total number of buyers in England fell by a third within 10 years, and first time buyers are increasingly relying on the Bank of Mum and Dad in order to buy. We discussed the Bank of Mum and Dad in more depth here.
While London has seen steep declines in homeowner rates, large northern cities like Sheffield and Leeds have also seen drops. This coincides with the rise in private tenants, increasing from 11% in 2003 to 19% in 2015. The BBC website has more information on the decline in home ownership in England.
