Almost 45% of women feel stressed that they will be renting for the rest of their lives.
The gender gap is an unfortunate construct that has long infiltrated society; however, when it comes to property, the deficit becomes ever more apparent.
iPlace Global – a consultancy focused on bringing accessibility to the home-buying and moving market – has revealed that 45% of women in ‘generation rent’ feel higher levels of stress when thinking about reaching home ownership, compared to only 39% of men.
UK-based mortgage broker, Habito, recorded a 2.8% rise in the number of mortgage applications made by female applicants – from 29% in 2017 to 33% 2021 – while property technology company, iPlace Global, found that almost 1-in-5 women are currently looking to purchase a home.
Whilst this clearly outlines the determination for females to set foot on Britain’s lucrative property ladder, unfair underwriting systems in pay and savings across the board have resulted in the reduced capacity for females to secure bricks and mortar.
Simon Bath, CEO of iPlace Global explains that traditional barriers in pay has made the ability for females to buy a home more disenfranchised, despite the fact that there is a sense of motivation and enthusiasm to get on the ladder.
Amidst a dire period when household finances are being stretched to the limit, the average annual gross income for British males stands at £35,260, whilst females earn, on average, just £29,684 a year, according to the Office of National Statistics (ONS). This means that for the average UK property worth £362,452, women would need an average of 12.2 times their annual salary to buy a home whilst men need just over ten times.
Women save 35% less than men across the UK, leaving a 40% gap in savings at the age of retirement, according to Open Access Government. This comes after the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed that the gender pay gap for full-time employees reached 8.3% in April 2022 – compared to 7.7% in 2021 – after the effects of the cost-of-living crisis have been reported to cause greater stress for women (48%) than men (36%).
Almost 1-in-5 female workers additionally did not see a salary increase last year, even though they spend a higher proportion of their income on household goods and rent.
A culmination of this, coupled with the staggering difference in savings, means that a majority of women are consequently priced out of home ownership – with the Women’s Budget Group finding that 57% of adults in social renting are females.
Bath explains: “ONS figures show that between 2020-2021 there was a subtle dip in the gender disparity, with the average annual income for women in 2021 reaching £28,305 while for men fell to £33,414 – which is a staggering 16% difference in income. Now, the cost-of-living crisis has widened this gap even more with the difference in income reaching just over 17%.
“There is clearly a positive change in the gender pay gap when you consider the historical disparities, however there is still a delay in the number of property transactions made by women when compared to men. Our research highlights that females have a strong appetite to achieve home ownership – but it is the disadvantages of traditional societal underpinnings holding them back.”
Bath continues: “At iPlace Global, we are continuously improving the knowledge and awareness around the home-buying and moving process. We strongly believe that by providing people with adequate information and resources, it’ll make their journey to home ownership that much easier.
“Disparities like these can become more prevalent during a cost-of-living crisis if they’re not addressed properly. My hope is that alongside providing access to education around buying a home, schemes are put in place to even out the playing field in gender income disparities to ensure that women have more of a chance in the coming years to secure a house.”
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