Homes in Bassetlaw are getting more affordable

There is good news for prospective buyers in Bassetlaw after new figures show that houses became slightly more affordable in 2018.
Housing in Bassetlaw is more affordable than in other parts of north NottinghamshireHousing in Bassetlaw is more affordable than in other parts of north Nottinghamshire
Housing in Bassetlaw is more affordable than in other parts of north Nottinghamshire

Each year, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) calculates how affordable housing is in England and Wales, by dividing the median house price in local authorities by the median full-time annual income.

The lower the ratio is, the more affordable homes are to buy.

The ONS uses the median instead of the mean as the average, which is the exact middle number in a series, so not distorted by the extreme highs and lows.

Housing in Bassetlaw is more affordable than in other parts of north NottinghamshireHousing in Bassetlaw is more affordable than in other parts of north Nottinghamshire
Housing in Bassetlaw is more affordable than in other parts of north Nottinghamshire

In Bassetlaw last year the affordability ratio was 5.4 - down from 5.6 in 2017 - well below the national average for England and Wales of 7.8.

That means prospective buyers need around five times their annual salary to buy a home .

While house prices have continued to rise, the average annual salary increase has outstripped that.

Median yearly earnings in Bassetlaw have rose by nine per cent in 2018,while the average house price only increased by four per cent.

Despite the recent improvement in the affordability ratio, house prices have increased drastically since 2002, when the ONS first began comparing this data.

The average home in Bassetlaw then cost £64,995, but in 2018 the figure has risen by 135 per cent, while the average annual salary has only increased by £10,476, a 58 per cent rise.

Across England and Wales, the affordability gap between the most and least expensive places to live is at its widest since records began.

Polly Neate, chief executive of the housing charity Shelter, said: "The figures leave us in no doubt that owning a home is an all-but-impossible dream for millions of working families.

"Combined with the dire lack of social homes, this has left huge numbers of people with no choice but to rent privately."

"It cannot be right that so many families, especially those on lower incomes, now face a lifetime in deeply unstable private renting, where they’ll have to pay well over the odds to keep a roof over their head.

"More families desperately need the option of social housing, and they need it now."