A Place to Call One’s Own

by Duncan Henderson

Our generation are no strangers to transient homes. Some of us will have moved quite a bit before we arrived at Glasgow, as parents upsize, downsize, move for work, or life takes a different turn. Some of us will have arrived home as a newborn and still enjoy going back to that same home at Christmas. Chances are though, unless a home student, we’ve all lived (or will end up living) in a number of flats during our days at University. Of course, that can be exciting in the moment - moving into halls for the first time; finding a flat with your friends for second year; decorating your new place (even at risk of the deposit); and the obligatory house-warming celebrations. After the graduation photos are taken and University remains nought but memories however, most hope the days of flat-hunting are coming to a close. Maybe a few years in a grad flat or with the parents to save up, then - just as many of our parents and grandparents did - putting down a deposit and getting a foot on the housing ladder. In my more naive years I figured it would be as simple as that.

‘Much like another major is -sue that will hit our generation harder (and then harder for each subsequent generation) - climate change - it is clear what needs to be done, but the political will is absent.’

Unfortunately it isn’t nearly as simple. Now, you don’t need an entire article to say that young people are struggling to buy homes. Whether it’s the hilariously tone-deaf ‘aspirational’ articles that always seem to include “and my parents gave me 50k to help”; those whose private schools cost as much as a house telling us that skimping on lattes and avocados will make up a deposit (I’ve done the maths - unless you spend ridiculous amounts on lattes and avocados, it won’t); or the countless other pieces that have been written bemoaning the subject and the earlier two examples, we all know that entering the housing market is going to a tough battle.

Now, it would be unfair to say that nothing has been done about this problem. Help to Buy, shared ownership schemes, and - most recently - government-backed 95% mortgages have all been floated as potential solutions and had wads of money thrown at home. Yet, homeownership among under-25s is less than half what it was in 1961. Among under-30s it is down by 25% over the same period. In fairness, some of these schemes have only recently just been launched and may yet stem the decline - but I wouldn’t bank on it.

House prices are soaring - which is fantastic news if you own your home but terrible news if you want to - and that presents the crux of the issue. Unless house prices stabilise at reasonable levels, each and every one of these schemes aiming to improve the affordability of homes for young people will merely be a small plaster over an ever growing wound. Else, they solve the problem briefly, but prices rise back into unaffordable levels (even with the support); necessitating a new scheme; and so on. This cycle is what makes the issue so difficult to solve - because it asks policymakers to incur the wrath of the existing homeowners (ie. those who typically vote, and those who typically donate to political parties) by driving down their prices with an ambitious building scheme to reduce demand and a reassessment of property taxes in order to aid young people (ie. those who vote less frequently and don’t tend to prioritise a political donation with our small paycheque). Much like another major issue that will hit our generation harder (and then harder for each subsequent generation) - climate change - it is clear what needs to be done, but the political will is absent.

That has big problems for generational equality. Our grandparents could normally put together a deposit within a few years. Our parents, maybe with a little help from the bank of mum and dad, most of them could manage too. Yet, for our generation the dream is out of sight unless our family can put forward a substantial sum - a luxury most of us don’t have. That means always paying somebody else’s mortgage in rent (plus a little extra for them) instead of every payment giving us more ownership of our own home. It means no security and the threat of eviction if the landlord wants to use the property, restrictive rules on pets and decorations, and little saved for old age. Owning one’s home gives stability and security unfortunately for us, that may be a long time away.