First time buyers priced out of housing market

New figures show buying a house in Hackney is beyond the reach of many first time buyers.

A survey of house prices in all 33 London boroughs by the Housing Federation reveals it is becoming increasingly difficult to get on the property ladder.

The average house price in Hackney according to the survey is �314,322.

A first time buyer would need a gross income of �80,826 to get a 90 per cent mortgage at 3.5 times income,

The actual average income in Hackney is �26,281, making a house price-income ratio of 12.0.

The average lower value home (ie a property in the bottom 25 percent of prices) in Hackney is �210,000, requiring a gross income of �54,000.

Belinda Porich, head of the Federation’s London region, said: “The Home Truths report shows that buying a house is not a realistic prospect for the vast majority of Londoners. This is especially bad news for London’s ordinary hardworking families. Many of them are already fearful of having to leave their homes next year due to the Government’s planned housing benefit caps and cuts.”

“House prices are far out of the reach of ordinary hardworking Londoners, triggering even greater demand for good quality social housing - especially as the average housing association rent in London is just a third of the equivalent property in the private sector,” she added