Young Britons my never be able to afford owning homes

According to the Chartered Institute of Housing, millions of young people in the UK will never have enough money to be able to buy their own home.

Soaring property prices coupled with lenders' demands for huge deposits mean a generation would be forced to rent the CIH says.

The institute's research reveals around 3 million people mostly in their 30s are being priced out of the property market but do not qualify for council accommodation as they earn way beyond the stipulated amount.

In more upmarket parts of the UK first-time buyers would need to raise £40,000 deposit, around twice the average income which is not possible to raise without help from parents.

According to Sarah Webb, CIH chief executive, a golden age of home-ownership is about to come to an end. She added that the idea that an Englishman's home is his castle gained momentum in the late 1980s and again after the 1990s downturn when owning a home came to be seen as not just somewhere to live but also an investment.

She added that the time had come to move away form the notion of 'right-to-buy' and 'wrong-to-rent.'