Housing crisis hits rural life as young move out

THE full extent of the crisis facing Yorkshire’s rural communities has been laid bare as shocking new statistics have revealed the numbers of young families and professionals who are being driven out by rocketing house prices.
Rural Yorkshire faces a housing crisisRural Yorkshire faces a housing crisis
Rural Yorkshire faces a housing crisis

A study published yesterday by the National Housing Federation has shown the dwindling numbers of people aged in their 30s and early 40s who are living in the countryside as they are priced out of the property market.

The research has shown a stark demographic shift as house prices have more than doubled in rural areas, despite incomes rising slower than in urban areas.

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The new figures from the federation have revealed the number of people aged between 30 and 44 has dropped by 10 per cent in rural parts of the region over the past decade – more than double the four per cent reduction seen in urban areas.

The Yorkshire and Humber’s lead manager at the National Housing Federation, Rob Warm, said: “Young people are being priced out of rural Yorkshire and Humber by rising housing costs and are moving elsewhere to raise their families.

“What will happen to the local shops and pubs, the village school, the small businesses that maintain rural economies, if there’s no-one left to keep them open?

“If we don’t start building more homes that ordinary families can afford, our treasured Yorkshire and Humber countryside will become the preserve of the old and wealthy.

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“It’s up to all of us to halt this rural decline. Tell your local councillor to say yes to village life and yes to homes.”

The analysis has shown the number of children under 10 in rural areas fell by three per cent while the number of youngsters rose by the same percentage in urban neighbourhoods across Yorkshire and Humber in the past decade.

The number of under-45s fell by two per cent in rural districts but rose three per cent in urban areas. In comparison, the number of over-65s in rural areas had risen nearly three times faster in rural areas than in towns and cities – a 22 per cent rise in rural areas compared with a seven per cent increase in towns and cities.

Alongside this demographic shift, rural house prices have soared in rural communities and more than doubled in 10 years, rising 109 per cent from £92,533 to £193,049. Wages have not kept pace, however, rising only five per cent in rural areas over the past five years – compared with eight per cent in towns and cities.

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The National Housing Federation has mounted a long-running campaign to kick-start the construction industry in the region for more house-building programmes.

The Yorkshire Post revealed last month that leading employers in the region had warned that soaring rents and house prices are strangling the economic recovery amid fears companies may be forced to move abroad owing to the high cost of living in the UK.

The region has some of the highest rents outside of the South of England and research published by the National Housing Federation revealed the affordable homes crisis was undermining the efforts of employers to bring in new staff.

The federation admitted that companies may be forced to look towards re-locating overseas if they are unable to resolve the problems in recruitment.

It estimated at least 240,000 new homes are needed nationally each year to satiate demand, but less than half that number are being built.