Between 1996 and 2016, the percentage of 25 to 34-year-olds who own their own homes  has fallen 19% from 55% to 34%. In a bid to combat this, prime minister Boris Johnson has  set out plans that include proposals for housing benefit being able to be counted towards  a mortgage. The prime minister vowed to “turn benefits to bricks”, saying it is unfair that  homeownership is dominated by over 65-year-olds. 

 Speaking in Lancashire, prime  minister Boris Johnson promised  a “comprehensive review” of the  mortgage market. One of the  biggest changes announced  in his speech was a pledge to  include housing benefits in the  mortgage application process:   “When (home) ownership  remains beyond the reach of a  great many hard-working people,  it’s neither right nor fair to put  ever vaster sums of taxpayers’  money straight into the pocket of  landlords”  

 The aim to make the property  ladder more accessible to the  younger generations is clear.  The prime minister announced  plans to allow the use of  welfare payments for paying  a mortgage – stating that the  £30 billion in housing benefit  spent on rent would be better  spent helping people on lower  incomes to own their own  homes. A spokesperson for the  government later confirmed that the rules would be changed to allow people on universal credit who save money through the use of a Lifetime ISA or Help to  Buy ISA would no longer have to worry about their benefit payments being cut when their savings hit a certain level. 

 A key focus of Johnson’s speech  was expanding the Right to Buy  scheme to enable tenants of  housing association properties to  get on the property ladder. The  new initiative is expected to be  limited to a few pilot schemes at  first, before a full implementation  can potentially help 17% of all  current households. 

 Johnson said: “We are going  to look to change the rules on  welfare so that the 1.5 million  working people who are in  receipt of housing benefits – I  stress working people – and  who want to buy their first home  will be given a new choice: to  spend their benefit on rent, as  now, or put it towards a first-ever  mortgage”. 

 As well as this, the prime minister  said that the Right to Buy  scheme will be extended and  “responsibly capped” and the  cost will be covered by existing  spending plans. This scheme  allows most council tenants  to buy their council homes at a  discounted rate.  Access to low-interest mortgages will also be expanded in an attempt to “unbolt the door to ownership” and combat the cost of home ownership. 

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