Housing costs stop couples starting families

More than one in four (26 per cent) of those who have put starting a family on hold also say they have been doing so for five years or more, charity Shelter found.

It estimated that more than a million people in this age group could be delaying starting a family if the figures were projected across Britain.

This could equate to a 63 per cent rise in people putting off having children because of housing costs compared with a similar study carried out in October 2009, the study said.

Shelter said the Government must take radical action to stop an entire generation being held back by a “desperate shortage” of affordable homes.

The charity said that with one in three first-time buyers now aged over 35, the large deposits often demanded by lenders are stopping growing numbers of people from buying a home.

Lenders have been tightening borrowing criteria in recent months, resulting in a drop in the proportion of approvals, while the range of mortgages available to first-time buyers and people with deposits of 10 per cent or less has shrunk significantly over the past six months.

A report from Lloyds TSB last week found that people trying to take their second step on the housing ladder, who are often those trying to trade up because they want to start having children, are facing some of the toughest market conditions seen in a generation.

Many would-be second-time buyers are stuck in negative equity because they bought their first home at the top of the market.

However, for those who do manage to raise a deposit, a separate study from Halifax found typical mortgage payments for a new borrower, including first-time buyers and home movers, are at their most affordable in 15 years.

More than 5,000 people across Britain took part in the research this month.