40% of first-time buyers in South East 'need financial assistance'

Around 40% of first time buyers aged under 30 in the South East during 2006 received assistance to help finance their house purchase, according to latest Government figures.

Affordability remains a significant problem in the South East.  The provisional lower quartile house price to lower quartile earnings ratio for the South East for the first three months of 2007 was 8.94. This compares to 7.29 for England and makes the South East the least affordable region other than London.

The challenges facing the South East have continued despite a net addition of 34,600 homes to the region’s housing stock in 2006/07 - an increase of 36% on 2001/02 when there were 25,400 net additions.

Hundreds of housing professionals from across the region were presented with the information at the Chartered Institute of Housing South East’s Annual Conference and Exhibition, in Brighton, by Richard McCarthy, Director General of Housing and Planning in the Department for Communities and Local Government.

At the conference, Mr McCarthy outlined the latest progress on the Housing and Regeneration Bill currently going through Parliament, which will enable the Government’s aim to deliver 240,000 additional homes a year by 2016 – a total increase of two million new homes by 2016, and three million by 2020.

Commenting on the current difficulties facing the housing market as a result of the credit crunch and reduced levels of confidence, Mr McCarthy said: “The number of housing starts was down and current housing market conditions were difficult and fragile – but the market had not imploded.”

Mr McCarthy also stressed the importance of keeping current levels of housing activity going.

He indicated Government would be continuing to keep a close watch on the housing market to assess the long-term trends.

Source:www.24dash.com/news/Housing/2008-03- 05-40-of-first-time-buyer s-in-South-East-need-fina ncial-assistance