The answers show the growing frustration among those forced into the rental market because of low wages in the South West during the property boom
A huge debate has blown up over a suggestion that nobody should own more than two homes. It comes as the housing crisis is getting worse in Devon with property prices skyrocketing to more than 14 times the average local salary.
Property prices show coastal towns in Devon have seen some of the biggest price jumps in England, pushing homes further out of the reach of many locals.
At the same time the boom in staycations during the pandemic has also fuelled price rises as investors are snapping up homes as holiday lets.
Now on Reddit, thousands of people have joined a debate asking the question: Do you think there should be an ownership limit of two properties per household in the UK? Given the housing inflation in the UK and many individuals owning multiple properties adding to the problem surely this is a practical way to redressing the imbalance.
The answers show the growing frustration among those forced into the rental market because of low wages in the South West during the property boom.
Research by property website Rightmove showed the south Devon town of Brixham had the highest rise in property prices in Britain over the last 12 months. Asking prices jumped by a quarter (25 per cent) in February 2022 compared to the same time last year.
The average went up by £65,445 ($85,295.45) in the 12 months to an average of £329,699 ($429,701.65).
In Torbay as a whole, including Torquay and Paignton, asking prices have risen by a fifth (21 per cent) and buyer demand is up 6 per cent.
Rightmove said: Britain’s long stretches of coastline and sandy beaches have really captured the imagination of home buyers in the past year, a trend that looks set to continue in 2022.
On Reddit one first time house owner described how investors had ‘muscled’ them out of the housing market so that they ended up paying £25k ($32.58k) over the asking price. The owner said: We just got an offer accepted for our first house after being muscled out by investors six times! We ended up paying £25k ($32.58k) over the asking price. The owner was actually offered £30k ($39.10k) more by an investor but decided that they’d rather sell to a young couple. Absolute heroes.
Others are calling for more social housing and one pointed out the need for even more rental housing because of the shortage of council accommodation, saying: Successive governments of both sides have failed to invest in social housing so we need the private sector.
Many people stuck up for the good landlords who look after their tenants, but others argued that landlords shouldn’t exist at all: If landlords ceased to exist (I know there would be huge market fallout initially), houses would be vastly cheaper for everyone. Far more people could be in their permanent home and have stability and a mortgage, rather than paying for someone else’s stability and mortgage. There would also be more social and non profit housing orgs and properties.
