I have chosen to do my project on the property boom that has shook the UK in the past 5 years. Some people may not believe this is an issue, but with the average house price now standing at £169, 300, a rise of 91% in 5 years, its an issue most chose to ignore.
How my generation are supposed to own their own property is the question this project will look at. With the average 27 year old earning less then 20 thousand a year, it seems an impossibility. An under 25, earns, on average less then 15 thousand,, this makes buying a house even more statistically remote, pricing us out of all but 3 of England's 388 council areas. We would need a mortgage of almost 6 and a half times our salary for our first home and this could be hampered even more by student debts. The average graduate debt is close to £10,000.
Teachers and nurses are particularly in danger of being priced out of this market. Anna O'Raw has been a primary school teacher for 3 years and currently earns £19, 000 a year. In the area of London where she lives, a 2 bedroom flat costs more then 250 thousand, and last year, a garage on her street sold for £70, 000. .
This could be any one of us, ending up homeless despite our glamorous qualifications. And don't think having a levels or a degree will save you from living it rough. Hidden underclass's of highly educated people are sleeping on Britains streets. Almost 50 % of the homeless questioned in a survey by the charity Crisis, had GCS's, 16% had A levels and 15% had a university degree.
Shocking as these figures may seem, its due to the lack of affordable housing that these people are where they are. Drugs & alcohol for some wasn't even a factor, they are homeless because they cannot afford a home, without a home they cannot get a job, without a job they have no money and the cycle continues.
Think I'm exaggerating? Maybe making it sound a little far fetched to make the project seem more relevant? Think again.
