Only a quarter of voters believe UK political parties pay ‘a lot of attention to housing’, believing that building more homes for Brits is not a prime concern for politicians.
Joint research by Zoopla and Ipsos investigating the public’s housing priorities for the next UK leadership has found that voters have put homebuilding at the ‘top of their list’ as a priority issue for the next government in the lead up to the election- but lack faith that the current political parties share their sentiments.
The research has revealed that concerns around constructing property are ‘in front of 10 other housing issues’ identified by voters, which also include tackling homelessness and reducing the number of empty homes in the country.
Support for first-time buyers featured joint fourth in the list of priorities at 33 per cent, despite this group being the focus of several housing pledges by political parties. First time buyers (FTBs) struggle with the deposit levels to buy a home, often relying on their parents for assistance. Even with support for a deposit, the household income to buy for FTBs currently averages £60,600.
There has been a generational decline in homeowners, and new research has shown that over half of those on the property ladder with adult children have or expect to help their children financially when buying a home.
The latest research by HomeOwners Alliance shows that homeowning parents worry about the prospects of their adult children who do not currently own their home being able to buy. A staggering 54% surveyed said they expect to shell out for their offspring’s first home and one in four feel guilty about not being able to provide support.
The homeowners who expect to help their children financially to buy a home reportedly have said that providing this financial support is expected to have a direct impact on the lives of parents themselves with 56% expecting to be affected.
Labour party leader Keir Starmer has outlined a plan to ‘get Britain building again’ and has placed importance on giving priority on first-time buyers after renters struggle to keep up with the rising cost of accommodation in their manifesto.
However, stats have suggested that the voting public say that ‘despite first-time buyers being a focus of several housing pledges by political parties, this is a lower ranked priority than others’.
The latest RICS residential survey has indicated that it’s not only the young that are suffering at the soaring costs of property, as homeowners over 55 claim to be seeking ‘mental health help‘ as the cost of living crisis has sparked ongoing difficulties with basic living.
Both homeowners and social renters are recorded to have agreed that pressing matters for the incoming government should be building more homes, while private renters surveyed say that they are likely to attach weight to controlling the pace of rent rises and rental reforms.
According to the research, half of voters disagree with the statement that ‘there isn’t much Governments can do to encourage the building of new homes’. A fifth strongly disagree, demonstrating a belief that Governments can make a positive difference to rates of home-building.
The main political party manifestos continue to target 300,000 or more homes a year in England. Zoopla and Ipsos say ‘this level hasn’t been reached for over 40 years, but the numbers have been increasing’. In 2023, home building, measured by net additions to supply, fell 65,000 homes short of the 300,000 mark.
Rishi Sunak has unveiled key pledges for landlords and first-time buyers as part of the Conservative Party manifesto. Sunak’s proposals include a 100% capital gains tax relief for landlords who sell properties to their tenants, a move he describes as “transformational.”
Sunak promises to abolish stamp duty for first-time buyers on properties valued up to £425,000 and to launch a revamped Help to Buy scheme. During a BBC interview, Sunak admitted that owning a home has become more difficult for many. In his manifesto, he outlines plans to eliminate stamp duty up to £425,000 permanently, which had temporarily benefited over 200,000 first-time buyers in one year.
The new Help to Buy scheme aims to assist first-time buyers by offering an equity loan of up to 20 per cent for new-build homes and providing a fiver per cent deposit on affordable terms.
Claims that public opinion is divided about how to fund the building of more affordable housing have been recorded in the latest stats. Just over two-fifths support the idea that increased borrowing should be used to fund this. However, only a quarter are willing to see taxes rise to pay for additional construction, which Zoopla says: ‘raises the question of how and who should support the funding of future home building at a time when the costs of building have been rising but house prices have stalled#.
According to the research, voters have become unsettled about the prevalence of homelessness and rough sleeping which ranked as the second priority for the next government, chosen by 41 per cent. This was followed by 39 per cent who selected a reduction in the number of empty homes.
The highest priority for the rental market is managing the pace of rental growth in the private sector which was chosen by 33 per cent. This was followed by giving renters in the private rented sector more rights, for example in relation to evictions and rent rises.
Zoopla have said: “Political parties appear aligned on the need for a new government to deliver rental reforms but measures to manage or control rental inflation are not proposed in England as there is a risk this reduces new investment in homes. Rental inflation for new lets is slowing (currently standing at +6.6%) and on track to fall below the pace of earnings growth in 2024.”
