WORKERS earning an average salary in Southend will need a pay rise of 131 per cent in order to afford a mortgage, a new report has revealed.

The National Housing Federation, which represents housing associations in England, said the average home now costs an average of £279,561 in the Southend unitary authority area of Southend, which is ten times the typical annual salary.

The federation’s East of England Home Truths 2017/18 report blames a shortfall of new housing for the problems, but councillor Tino Callaghan said it was down to buy-to-let landlords.

He said: “The Government is blinkered. We have got a housing crisis because of buy-to-let landlords.

“The building crisis is because for every ten properties on the market, nine are sold to investors.

“If you have five or six people bidding on a property, you will go with the investor who is a cash buyer.

“Nobody wants to help people and Universal Credit has now taken away anything the council could do to help.

“The system is going to put so many people on the streets.”

Between 2012 and 2016 there was a shortfall of about 3,287 in the number of new homes needed in Southend.

In Basildon, this shortfall was 182 and in Castle Point this was 912 homes.

The report also went on to say rental is equally as unaffordable, with the average monthly cost of renting now £792 per month, equivalent to 34 per cent of private renters’ income.

Those on housing benefit who also work, around 28 per cent, are still unable to afford their rent.

Sarah Finnegan, external affairs manager for the National Housing Federation, said: ‘The housing market has seen a relentless rise in the gap between house prices and people’s salaries.

“Southend is no exception.

“Attaining a mortgage is increasingly unrealistic and private sector rents make saving up that bit more difficult.

“As this year’s Home Truths report shows, it is more important than ever for the sector to be able to deliver homes that are truly affordable.

“If we want to get serious about ending the housing crisis, we need to start looking at unlocking more land so we can build homes faster.”

Last year housing associations built 26 per cent of new homes in the country and, in the East of England, completed more than 4,000 in 2016/2017, with another 5,000 on the way.

In London, they built nearly 9,000 new homes and started a further 13,585.