To coincide with the launch of the ‘Help to Buy: ISA’ tomorrow, Labour has released figures showing the scale of the challenge for young people wanting to buy their own home after five years of Tory failure.

It reveals:

·         the number of young people owning their own home has fallen by 21% - or 343,000 households – since 2010.

·         a 20% deposit for an average first time buyer home in England now stands at £42,500, almost twice the average full-time salary of a young person.

·         while the average salary of a young person has shrunk by almost £700 in real terms from 2010-15, the average house price paid by a first time buyer has increased by over £40,000 in real terms.

·         the government’s proposed solution of ‘starter homes’ won’t help most young people - by 2020 the average starter home in England could require an income of £50,000 and a deposit of £40,000.

John Healey MP, Labour’s Shadow Cabinet Minister for Housing and Planning, said:

“After five years of failure from Conservative Ministers it’s harder than ever for young people to buy a place of their own. The government’s response to this housing costs crisis barely scratches the surface.

“If you’re a young person or family on an ordinary income, then a home of your own must feel increasingly out of reach, while government plans are next to no help.

“As the Chancellor showed in the spending review last week with cuts to housing investment and affordable homes, he’s not willing to help young people with the crisis of high housing costs.”