It’s because rents are fooking extortionate and you can’t get a mortgage for a fooking extortionate flat without a whopping big deposit.

I've got a site where I'd like to build six reasonably inexpensive flats that would be affordable to young couples on a combined salary of circa £50k but last time I asked council said no.  Going to have another go soon on the basis that Mr. Khan's pronouncements and general coverage of the housing crisis might have changed the council's policies.

Sails , serious question how can you afford to build a big luxury house in the Home Counties, and purchase land and build 6 flats on it on a resi conveyancer salary , BOMAD?

BOMAG as in granddad made his fortune and we're slowly spending the remains of it.  Can't actually afford to build the flats but if I can get the planning know a couple of developers I could probably JV it with and use their access to bank funding.  Also working on an idea to try for planning on some of the remains of the family farm by offering one house for a rural housing association if I we can  have planning for a second more luxury house.

I'm also currently using BOMAD who will be repaid from my mortgage once the place is habitable and I've sold my own flat.

Res ipsa, for someone who supposedly went to public school and university and then practised at the bar, you are amazingly naive as to the concept of family money.

What Stix said.