Money worries 'putting lives on hold'

Tuesday, March 23rd 2010

Would-be parents are choosing not to start a family until their finances are in better order.

A YouGov survey from the National Housing Federation found that four out of ten young adults would wait to have children until they could afford to purchase a home.

It called the situation a "scandal" and said that people should not have to put their lives on hold because there are not enough affordable homes.

Weddings are also being placed on the back burner, with seven per cent of the 1,000 people polled saying they would save up to buy a house before getting married.

Associate editor of Mumsnet Catherine Hanly claimed many people have visited forums on the website admitting to feeling the financial strain.

"If people looked at life logically rather than emotionally, the financial cost of starting a family would be very off-putting and hard to justify," she commented.

A recent report by LV= discovered that parents spend more than £201,000 on raising their child until the age of 21.