Housing: Prices

Grant Shapps

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the ratio of lower quintile house prices to lower quintile earnings was in each of the last 20 quarters. (264991)

The ratio of lower quintile house prices to lower quintile earnings in England for the years 1997 to 2008 is presented in the following table:

	Lower quintile house prices to lower quintile earnings, England
1997	3.51
1998	3.52
1999	3.66
2000	3.79
2001	3.97
2002	4.31
2003	4.94
2004	6.14
2005	6.66
2006	7.10
2007	7.37
2008	7.03
Source: Land Registry and the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ONS).

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what forecast she has made of likely changes in the housing affordability ratio throughout 2009. (264993)

Communities and Local Government does not make forecasts of the housing affordability ratio.

Volume 490: debated on Monday 23 March 2009