The cost of buying your own home in Stafford Borough increased by more than double the rate of an average salary in the area over the past 10 years, leaving thousands of people with no hope of ever getting on the housing ladder.
The cost of buying a home in the borough soared by 91% in the last 10 years – while the average salary rose by just 30%.
National Housing Federation research found that in 2001 the average price of a home in Stafford Borough was £96,698, and the average salary was £16,136.
In the space of 10 years the price of a home has rocketed to £184,771 – an increase of 91% – whereas wages have risen just 30% to £20,940, making buying a home increasingly unaffordable for thousands of people.
The figures show that the gap between house prices and wages in Stafford Borough has risen 47% over the last decade. Staffordshire as a whole has seen an increase of 49%.
During the same period, getting a mortgage also got a lot harder, with the amount of deposit needed in Staffordshire rising by an amazing 367%. In 2001 the deposit for a typical 90% mortgage (available in 2001) was £9,034. By 2011 the amount banks were willing to lend was less, so the deposit needed for a typical 75% mortgage leapt to £42,205.
Gemma Duggan, West Midlands lead manager for the National Housing Federation, said: “These shocking figures show that it is getting increasingly hard for thousands of people in Staffordshire to buy a home of their own in the current climate. It’s no wonder that people can often feel like they have to win the lottery to be able to buy in their local area.
“A shortage of homes means the price to buy them is being pushed ever higher by the market and out of reach of thousands of hard-working families. Unless we start building more homes people can truly afford to match the demand this will only get worse.”
1 comment
Gosh
Yeah….I agree,we need to build more affordable houses!Prices are too high now and overvalued.