Regional house prices: South West

Hi Sam,
I've just happened upon your post and really hear your frustration.
I am a landlady who is trying to help people in your situation get onto the property ladder by offering homes on a Rent2Buy. That is, you move in, rent the property for 2-3 years and then buy it.
If you reply to this post I can share more details of how it works for you and the many others trying to buy their homes.
Good luck
Sally

Nobby
It's worth doing a little excercise in your area, as it has been my experience that "affordable housing" is the most expensive. For example, let us assume that a standard semi with garden and garage is £200k and an "affordable home" £150k as they are in my area. Commonly the lower price is for a small flat with a floor area of around 50% of the semi (without a garden or garage), thus 75% of the price for 50% of the floor space.
Now, I would contend that a developer unable to build "affordable homes" would still want to stay in business, and lever the price of the product (semidetached properties) to the market - thus having to reduce the price. We can deduce from this that the "affordable homes" are a way to extract increased profits from those least able to play whilst at the same time accelerating the price of family housing.
Jim Muir

There are two prongs to the problem: -
1) We now expect to buy and not rent. Never an arguement in my youth where council housing was plentiful and renting did not attract a stigma. Problem accelerated as the Government on the 1980s promoted the sale of council houses and precluded councils from building. Leaving the construction of housing in great part to the private sector means that the builder will only develop to maximum profit, much driven by the desire of the purchaser to own bricks and mortar rather than a home.
2) Any attempt by the Government to press for an increase in the house building programme faces oposition at the local level exacerbated by the expansion of the need to consult the local population of NIMBYs, who can place disproportionate pressure on planning committees.

Have you considered Exeter? Prices are still reasonable there and I'm sure with a combined income of nearly 40k you could easily get a Victorian terrace with garden. I live in Sidmouth where the prices are ridiculous but even in East Devon there are more affordable towns such as Honiton and Seaton. Failing that if you can wait a couple of years the government has promised to build affordable homes for locals in the new Cranbrook development

i believe "shared ownership" would be an option for most who feel left out of the property market. You can start by purchasing as low as 50% of a property and pay rent (normally very cheap rent)on the rest. Also as your circumstances change you can buy a bigger share in your house and pay less rent. You can also sell when you want etc.
Available through local housing associations.

I LIVE IN EAST DEVON, CURRENTLY RENTING AND I THINK I ALWAYS WILL BE.MY HUSBAND AND I EARN £39,000 BETWEEN US EACH YEAR AND WE CANNOT AFFORD TO LOOK AT BUYING LET ALONE GOING TO SEE ANY PROPERTIES IN OUR AREA. IT'S VERY VERY SAD THAT WE ARE PRICED OUT OF THE MARKET AND WILL HAVE TO CONTINUE RENTING,WE ARE CONSIDERING EMIGRATING FOR BETTER OPPORTUNITIES BUT DON'T WANT TO LEAVE OUR FAMILIES.I REALISE IT'S THE STATE OF THE NATION, MY HUSBAND AND I ALREADY TRAVEL 30-40 MILES EACH DAY TO WORK AS THE WAGES IN OUR AREA ARE AWFUL. HUGH FERNLY WHITTINGSTALL AND HIS BANDWAGON ARE TAKING OVER THE TOWN AND I'M SURE THAT WILL ONLY INCREASE HOUSE PRICES. NEARLY EVERYONE IN MY AGE GROUP AND FINANCIAL SITUATION I KNOW ARE IN THE SAME BOAT, SO HOW CAN LANDLORDS AFFORD TO BUY MORE PROP TO RENT TO US?I REALLY DON'T MIND WORKING HARD FOR A HOUSE BUT WHAT PRICE IS TOO MUCH, WE WANT CHILDREN BUT WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO HAVE THEM WITHOUT ME GOING BACK TO WORK FULL TIME IF WE HAD A MORTGAGE. MOAN OVER I AM DEALING WITH MY LOT JUST FRUSTRATES ME SOMETIMES