ONLY people living in three areas of the country can afford to buy homes according to a report published today -- and two of the areas are in East Lancashire.
The Hometrack national survey revealed that in 99 per cent of the country house prices are outstripping the price of the average wage, meaning housebuyers -- especially young, first-time buyers -- are unable to get on the property ladder. Only Burnley and Hyndburn have affordable homes. The other area named was Hull. The report cited the property boom as the reason, adding there seemed to be no end in sight.
The survey says rises fell back to 0.7 per cent this month -- the lowest since January. But this is still eight times the monthly rate of inflation and the annual forecast rise for 2002 is 20 per cent.
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