Lettings boom could trigger fall in national birth rate

Family life is under threat because so many people are having to live in the private rented sector where there is an inadequate supply of stock suitable for families.
As a result, younger people are putting off having children and forming households, because they can neither afford to buy their own homes nor find anywhere suitable to rent.Yolande Barnes, director of residential research at Savills, told the Council of Mortgage Lenders conference, Future Housing, yesterday that a falling birth rate could be one of the consequences.

She said properties in the private rented sector were geared towards providing apartments for single and childless people and she warned of serious social implications. She said: “There comes a point when households stop forming, when there isn’t a property to move in to. We face a real danger in this country of a falling birth rate.” She said there was scope for investors to expand into family accommodation.

Article courtesy of Letting Agent Today