London Property Prices

London Property prices

One of the problems of London is its appearance as a world city

For so many years it has appeared as a safe haven against any crises in the word which has led to the phenomenon now occurring of the indigenous population moving out.

Cranes stand in many places with new housing developments holding sway. In fact there seems to be a rather frenetic pace of building. However this is not likely to benefit any ordinary people as the world comes to London’s doorsteps. Houses are seen as investments. Stories abound in the press of streets in parts of London where here are no light at night as the houses lie unoccupied.

Meanwhile the crisis for ordinary Londoners is fairly acute. The sight of people sleeping in doorways in this town is not unusual. The price of private housing is now so high that it is beyond the reach of most working people. Initially there has been a flow of people towards the so called commuter belt villages as they can no longer afford London prices.

The pressure on rented housing has also been substantial and for many people who have lived here all their lives the word is “how long can we stay?”Many people consider relocating to other parts of the country as they can no longer see themselves affording the prices that flats and houses in London command or raiding deposits of about £30 000 which is more than the average annual wage. In many ways the recession as exaggerated this tendency as banks play safe and demand higher deposits before they giver mortgages

Many of the regeneration policies followed by local authorities have tended to exacerbate this problem as flats are snapped up be rich overseas buyers leaving substantial housing shortage. The only local buyers able to afford the prices are those who already have properties or young people able to borrow from the bank of Mum and Dad. This is leading to big changes in the demographic of Central London. With the average price of a one bedroom flat in London approaching £400 000 owning  one’s own home in London is a pipe dream for most people.

Other ramifications exist! The poor seem to be in the process of being exiled to the outer suburbs as in many other European cities but increasingly what are known as key workers are as well. Key workers include such people as teachers, police, emergency services, cleaners. This of course leads to the spectre of Central London existing without key workers to service the place

One thing is certain. The crisis of housing in London is going to take more of a centre stage in local politics sooner rather than later