Future first-time buyers will be middle-aged says NHF

The average 21-year-old will have to wait until they reach middle age before they can afford to get a foot on the property ladder according to a new report published by the National Housing Federation.

Single young adults will finally be given the keys to their own place when they hit 43 – providing they have not had children and have successfully saved up a large proportion of their income over the previous two decades.

The situation is even grimmer for those hoping to get a home in London, who will have to save up until they’re 52 years old to afford a mortgage.

The Federation said the report highlighted the scale of the country’s housing crisis and warned that home ownership was now more of a dream than a reality for most young people.

But as younger people increasingly turn to affordable housing as an alternative, funding for new developments, changes to the planning system and funding cuts threaten to lead to a dramatic slump in the supply of new homes for first time buyers.

The research found the picture for first time buyers is only mildly better in the South West, where single adults will on average get their own place at 48, and in the South East, any house warming parties will have to wait until they reach 45.

The Federation commissioned Oxford Economics to forecast how long the average 21-year-old would have to wait until they could afford both a deposit of 20 per cent and earn enough money to qualify for a mortgage.

Men will be able to afford a home at 40 on average, seven years earlier than women – who typically earn less than their male counterparts. This will mean women will have to save for a deposit over a longer period and wait later in life until they earn enough to qualify for a mortgage.

But there’s better news for couples who save hard and delay having a family, with those who stay together from the age of 21 being able to afford their own place at 27.

The research assumes buyers have an average credit rating and can therefore borrow 3.75 times their salary, are in full time employment and do not live at home with their parents.

Federation chief executive David Orr said: “First time buyers will have to save religiously for two decades before they can finally afford to get their own place, by which time they’re likely to be in their 40s and delayed having a family.

“This report highlights how home ownership is increasingly become a pipe dream rather than a reality for millions of young people without wealthy parents to support them and demonstrates again the scale of the country’s housing crisis.

“Affordable housing to both rent and buy has a key role to play in tackling the current housing crisis, but funding cuts and the scrapping of regional housing targets could lead to a dramatic slump in the supply of these desperately needed properties.

“If we don’t safeguard the building of affordable homes then thousands of younger people will be locked out of the home ownership market for decades or added to waiting lists already at record levels.”

Regional breakdown
•North West -- 35
•North East -- 35
•Yorkshire and Humberside -- 36
•East Midlands -- 35
•West Midlands -- 38
•East of England -- 43
•London -- 52
•South East -- 45
•South West -- 48