UK house prices expected to increase by 30% over next 5 years
03-25-2014
Rex Features
Not enough homes have been built for more than 20 years in the UK, which means that the price of homes will go up by 30 percent in the next five years, according to figures just released by the National Housing Federation. It is calling on the government to focus on increasing the supply of housing. We talk to Claire Astbury, a spokesperson for the National Housing Federation.
The National Housing Federation wants to encourage more house-building to tackle the housing affordability crisis in the UK, Astbury told VoR.
The big increases in house prices particularly in the hot markets of the south and south-east have a real impact on economy and family life, says Astbury.
“We need to make sure that the voices are heard of people who need the homes to live in, not just those who want to stop houses being built.”
There are steps to increase housing supply, like the Ebbsfleet garden city, says Astbury, “but it will only will make a difference if it is the first of many large developments, they need to be additional”.
“We want to see greater and more ambitious strides made to deal with the housing crisis in England and just make sure that the homes get built.
“We’ve seen increasing demands at local level from people who say they want the right homes in the right places at the right prices for their community.”
She thinks the housing market has broken in a lot of different places:
“People who want to invest in property clearly have a very good reason to do so with prices on the up. But that also creates scarcity elsewhere.”
“’Help to Buy’ is having some impact for people who might otherwise have had to rent but even so that just exacerbates the demand issue in some places. And there are people who say that causes the prices to rise again. At the end of the day is about new homes coming forward and availability.”
(VoR)
Brendan Cole