Poll: Is it more difficult for today's generation to get on the property ladder?

New research released by the housing charity, Shelter, reveals that wage increases have now fallen dramatically behind rising house prices over the past 16 years. A single person in the Black Country would need on average a salary of £37,399 to afford the same house they could have bought in the 1990s on the equivalent wages of the time.

A worker in the Black Country would need to earn a further £15,389 on top of the average £22,010 a year salary just to keep up with the increase in house prices.

Is it more difficult for today's generation to get on the property ladder? Vote in our poll below and have your say in the comments section:

In areas of Staffordshire and Worcestershire it is even worse with people in Lichfield and Wyre Forest needing around £21,000 a year more.

Dudley North MP Ian Austin said: "We all want to own our own home, but these figures show how high house prices have become, and how difficult it is for hard-working families in the Black Country to achieve their dream.

"I helped get funds for new homes that have been built on Priory Road, the Wrens Nest and in Gornal, but that's still not enough for huge demand.

"The Government needs to step in and commit to building more houses.

"I want the Government to make an ambitious commitment to building 200,000 new homes, and I want as many as possible of those to replace derelict land in Dudley."

Natasha Millward, who is Labour's candidate for Dudley South, explained: "The Help to Buy Scheme pumps up demand, but does nothing to increase housing supply.

"As a result house prices rocket sky high, and people get shunted into the private rental sector.

"In turn, increased demand for rented homes, triggers higher rents.

Campbell Robb, chief executive of Shelter, said: "When you'd need to more than double your salary just to keep up with rising house prices, it is no surprise that the dream of a home of their own is slipping further out of reach for a generation.

"Politicians need to start meeting people halfway by committing to bold solutions that will get more affordable homes built.

"Otherwise future generations will find themselves priced out of a stable home, however hard they work or save.

"The reality is that successive governments have failed to build the affordable homes that this country needs, and as a result our housing shortage has reached crisis point.

"Despite the fanfare surrounding Help to Buy, pumping money into mortgage guarantee schemes is not the solution.

"This further inflates prices by increasing demand for an already limited number of homes, and will only make things worse for the next generation of first time buyers," he added.

"The only solution is to build more affordable homes."