A recent survey has revealed that housing affordability is the top worry for consumers where the housing market is concerned.
This is according to the HomeOwners’ Alliance, whose Annual Survey revealed that 83% of respondents saw high house prices as a ‘serious’ problem, whilst over three quarters (77%) felt that housing availability was a key concern. The proportions have grown from the levels recorded in 2014, where they stood at 77% and 69% respectively.
Polling over 2,000 UK adults, the YouGov survey is conducted on behalf of HOA and BLP insurance, and has tracked the top concerns in the housing market for half a decade.
Whilst supply was outlined as a key issue, the poor quality of homes was also cited by over half of respondents (57%) as being a serious problem. This is up from 2014’s figure of 52%.
Problems for those looking to take their first step on the property ladder were also raised, with 86% of first-time buyers stating that house prices were an issue, and 87% describing saving for a deposit as a serious problem.
Sharing her thoughts on the survey results was Paula Higgins, Chief Executive of the HomeOwners Alliance. She said: “The housing sector in the UK is on its knees. There’s a shortage of building, a constant stream of stories surrounding poor quality and unfair deals for homeowners, a lack of social housing, rising homelessness and a leasehold system that is dangerously broken. As our survey shows, these problems have escalated over the last five years and the crisis is deepening. We’ve become desensitised to the headlines.
“People are just as keen as in previous years to own a home but the system is failing them, despite the introduction of flagship schemes like Help to Buy. Although Brits have reacted positively to government’s changes to stamp duty house prices and availability continue to be major concerns year on year. It’s telling that leasehold issues have been by far the fastest growing concern for the last 2 years – the government needs to hurry up with their plans for leasehold reform and be more ambitious.”
