Research: Can London private renters access the latest home ownership schemes

By: Sara Mahmoud
Published: March 2016

Can London private renters access the latest home ownership schemes

London is suffering the consequences of a broken housing market. For Londoners in their thirties, owning a home was once possible if you worked hard and saved. For most it's now impossible without major help from the Bank of Mum and Dad. Despite this, the majority still want to one day have the security of owning a home: an increasingly impossible dream.

New evidence in this paper shows that the main government schemes - Starter Homes, shared ownership and Help to Buy London - will not fill this gap on their own in London. The schemes are simply too expensive for thousands of low and middle earning Londoners. For private-renting households under 40:

  • At least 60% of London households cannot access a typical shared ownership property

  • At least 80% of London households would not be able to access a typical London Help to Buy property

  • Up to 80% of London households would not be able to access a typical Starter Home