Islington’s rising house prices squeeze residents on middle and low income out

Located in Northeast London, between the City and the capitals’ outskirts, Islington is known for many things. Housing is one of them. “There’s quite interesting things about the housing market in Islington,” says Julia Atkins, a senior housing researcher at London Metropolitan University.

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Islington is the local authority with the highest discrepancy between average income and house prices in the UK. According to Rightmove, the cost of an average property in the borough can range from £620,000 to more than one million pounds. Yet, it is also one of the countries’ most deprived areas, registering one of the highest rates of child poverty.

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But Islington wasn’t always an expensive and thriving area to live in. After the World War II bombings, which destroyed most parts of the borough, both local authorities and the private sector had to provide new housing estates to the residents who got displaced.

Allan Dell, 71, born and raised in Islington, says his recollections of his first house in Angel were of small dark rooms in a four storey building lit by gas, in which the toilet was shared with other families. A contrasting picture to today.

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“In the days we lived in Islington it was considered a very low and rough area. Old housing stock; bad landlords; a lack of housing exacerbated by serious war damage to the area being near Kings Cross,” says Allan. “From what I see now there is a huge change from my early years in Islington, some for the better, some for the worse.”

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In 1956, Allan and his family were rehoused from private rented accommodation to a council flat, which had been constructed after the war. “There was no support, no benefits, the NHS was just being started, very little council housing. If you look at it from my early life, and I don’t want to sound old, life now even for the vulnerable is improved by the possible support out there which was just not available in my time,” he says. He has since moved out as a consequence of the rising housing prices.

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City Trend

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Today British properties, especially those located in London, are among the most expensive in the world, alongside Monaco and Singapore.

“London’s property prices have always been going up, no matter what the market is anywhere else,” says Julia, who has been working in the housing sector for local governments since the 1970s. “It’s the land in London that has the value and that’s what keeps the prices up. If there are relatively few properties to buy and that’s where people want to live, then that scarcity means an increase in value.”

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Some of London’s prime locations, such as Chelsea and Knightsbridge, suffered from plummeting house prices during the subsequent months to the Brexit vote. Islington, however, was one of the boroughs that registered the highest rises.

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“Some people who can’t afford to live in places like Westminster, Kensington or Chelsea are now casting their eyes on Islington,” Julia explains.

“It is a place where there is quite a good mix: You’ve got single occupation houses with a Mercedes or a Porsche parked outside, next door to flats that are still council housing.”

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“Two Islingtons”

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The typical price of a property in Islington amounts to more than 17 times the average annual salary. More middle-income families are forced to live in privately rented housing, because they cannot afford to purchase a home.

 

“Property speculation obviously comes with a vicious cycle. People who are on medium or lower income will find it very difficult to live here and that’s a real problem in terms of the character of the borough. They’re essentially being priced out. And we’ve seen it happening on this estate, and it is happening across the borough, particularly in the south,” says Glynn Robbins, manager of the Quaker Court Estate in Old Street.

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While rocketing property value is seen as the main problem in the area, the consequent continuous rise in rents cannot be ignored. According to Cripplegate Foundation, £90,000 is the yearly amount families who do not qualify for social rented housing will need to earn to be able to afford renting in Islington.

 

“The young and the middle class are being squeezed out. Just think about people who have ordinary jobs. They are not working in the City but they are working at the Barclays bank in Islington High Street on an average salary. Do you think they can afford a flat at £621,000?,” says Julia Atkins. “Do you think a young couple starting off their life together can afford that? People living in the private rented sector are easily paying £1000 per month; how do you save when you’re just giving your money away to a landlord?,” she adds.

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40% of the total of Islington’s housing are council estates. There are 150 council houses of 50 or more homes each spread across the borough. The “right-to-buy” policy introduced in 1980, allowed council tenants to purchase their rented houses, which meant that social houses have since been sold but not replaced.

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Glynn, who has been a housing worker and campaigner for 25 years, says: “18,000 people are on the council’s waiting list for housing and really that is only the tip of the iceberg.”

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Glynn is taking part in the national campaign “Axe the Housing Act” which aims to repeal an Act he believes will further contribute to the deepening of the crisis. “On this estate for example, if the act goes through, every time we get an empty home, which we do two or three times a year, instead of it going to the next family on that waiting list, it will end up in the estates agents’ window.”

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Only one in twenty people were rehoused in 2015. Each month around 300 people apply for council housing in Islington. Islington Council is also supporting the campaign.