Why rent when you can buy an affordable home?

Yesterday's report from the housing charity Shelter revealed that just 12% of areas in England have affordable rents, illustrating why more people should attempt to buy a new home, rather than rent one.

Private rents are now unaffordable in 55% of local authorities in England, the housing charity Shelter has said.

Homes in these areas cost more than 35% of median average local take-home pay - the level considered unaffordable by Shelter's Private Rent Watch report.

The problem is that many would-be purchasers are finding it difficult to qualify for a mortgage in order to buy a home, mainly because banks continue to cherry pick low-risk customers to lend money to. Today's mortgage market is freezing out many prospective property purchasers.
Campbell Robb, chief executive of Shelter, said: "We have become depressingly familiar with first-time buyers being priced out of the housing market, but the impact of unaffordable rents is more dramatic.

"With no cheaper alternative, ordinary people are forced to cut their spending on essentials like food and heating, or uproot and move away from jobs, schools and families."

Affordable homes

The affordable homes market provides a viable alternative to renting for many people looking to escape the rental trap and buy a new home.

Affordable new homes are a very popular option for homebuyers in today's economic climate. There are a number of affordable new homes schemes on the market which allow people who would otherwise be unable to buy a property to enjoy all the benefits of living in a brand new home for a price that fits their means.

Many housebuilders and housing associations around the country offer a range of affordable new homes and there are several distinct types of affordable homes schemes for you to consider, such as shared equity and part-rent/part-buy (shared ownership), which often works out to be much cheaper than renting a home.

Housing Minister Grant Shapps said the government recognised the importance of private landlords in providing accessible and affordable homes.

"We need to build more homes given new house building fell to its lowest peacetime levels since the 1920s under the last administration," he said.