It has been well documented on this website magazine and all over the news in Britain the undeniable fact that the price of property all over the United Kingdom, particularly in the suburban areas around London of Barking and Dagenham, is rising meteorically. This is therefore making it staggeringly difficult—if not nigh impossible—for people on a low or even a middle income to even think about buying their own house. And as for first-time buyers or young people straight out of college or university, the general consensus is to forget about it and commit to paying rent to a private landlord instead.
On the other hand, there are hopes that the government’s recent implementation of “Help to Buy” ISA schemes will be able to encourage spending in the property sector, despite the staggering increase in home prices. Indeed, the Home Office of National Statistics (or ONS) has recently demonstrated the most popular locations around the country where ISA bonuses were invested to home buyers. The highest area of these bonds was in Leeds, West Yorkshire, where a grand total of 850 bonds were paid in the time spanning from December 2015 to September the next year. It would not seem too surprising for the city since, as one of the largest banking sectors north of London and with cheaper prices than in the Southern capital, Leeds is clearly the most sought after property market for those needing the “help to buy” schemes around the country. Birmingham in the Midlands was a runner-up, with 594 ISA Bonuses paid in the same time frame.
On the other hand, Oxford was the place with the least ISA Bonus transactions, with only 8 being recorded by the ONS. Whether or not the scheme is enough to encourage people to buy their own homes is debatable, but what the ONS figures seem to show is that more people are thinking of investing in property than in 2007.
