Shared Ownership Buyers 'Increasingly Older And Richer'

Shared ownership homes are increasingly being sold to older and richer tenants.  A major research project has revealed the percentage of buyers aged under 30 has declined sharply in recent years, with the average income of a buyer in London rising by almost £10,000 in 10 years. Shared owners are also giving up on ambitions to staircase up to full ownership – with less than half planning to buy additional shares in their property in the next five years. The findings, revealed in a report commissioned by housing association Viridian, come as the government considers switching housing funds to low-cost homeownership rather than social or affordable rent. Download a copy of the report from the Viridian website.

Help to Buy Helps the Rich

More than 1,750 couples earning over £100,000 a year were given government loans to buy a house. Help to Buy was brought in to help first time buyers struggling to save enough cash to get on the property ladder. However the scheme is helping some of the wealthiest families in the country, the government's own figures show. Overall, 1,758 help to buy loans were handed out to individuals or couples who take home more than £100,000 a year – despite them being in the top 10 per cent richest households in the country. In addition, almost 500 of the couples earning over £100,000 who were given government help already owned a property. More than 30,000 loans were handed to households earning more than £40,000 a year – which puts them in the richest 30 per cent of earners in the country. Read more on the Daily Mail website.