The housing market has been repairing, but it is far from the healthy levels seen before the economic crisis. One demographic group that has been sadly missed in the housing market has been the first time buyer. Housing has become so expensive that many experts fear that there will be generations that will be skipped from climbing onto the property ladder.

According to a report from the Office of National Statistics (ONS), in the mid-1980s, one in three 16 to 24 year olds was capable of affording a home. By 1991 around 65% of 25 to 34 year olds in England were buying homes. In 2012, that same age group had declined to 45% as the majority of buyers were growing older due to the savings required to buy. Even the 35 to 44 year old group had fallen from 80% of them being able to buy to only 65%. In 2015, the number of 16 to 24 year olds able to afford to buy their own home has fallen to only one in 10.

The ONS data reports that the demographic group most capable of affording to buy a home is the age group of 65 years old to 74 years old. This group has eight of 10 living in an owned home. In the 1990s home ownership was most concentrated in the 35 to 44 years old group.

The reasoning for the absence of first time buyers could be due to the rise in house prices and therefore the increased levels of deposits. There is also a tightening on lending with new guidelines required by lenders to insure a borrower can afford a loan both now and in the future when interest rates increase.

A statement from ONS said, “Another likely contributing factor to the decline in numbers of first-time buyers is the rise in the value of deposits paid to secure a mortgage.

“For first-time buyers, the average deposit as a percentage of purchase price increased by almost 10 percentage points between 1988 and 2013, standing at 22% of the price of the house. Deposits for first-time buyers peaked during the economic downturn in 2009 at 28% of the purchase price. Since 2009, deposits for first-time buyers have steadily fallen – though figures remain among the highest for the last 25 years.

“House prices have been increasing, and first-time buyers are finding it more difficult to get on the property ladder – while home ownership among younger age groups generally has declined. If the number of households in England grows to 24.3 million in 2021 as projected, this would be equivalent to an additional 221,000 households per year. Housing is therefore likely to remain an important topic in the future.”