But if we are to repair and restore the housing ladder, we will need to see more significant initiatives than the Prime Minister announced this week. The affordability of housing is the key problem for young people. According to the Nationwide, the ratio of first-time buyer house prices to earnings has nearly doubled from an average of 2.8 in the 1980s and 1990s to 5.1 now. In London, the problem is much worse – the ratio of house prices to earnings is now 9.6 – three-and-a-half times the 80s and 90s national average.