No but it still doesn't mean that Brendan gets to dismiss that fact that people want to.
Hi Pete
I don't get this at all. As trasneoir pointed out, everyone can't live in Sandyford. Most people are prepared to get a starter home which does not satisfy 100% of their needs. They trade up after a while. Many people today want the perfect house and they want it now. And they don't want to tailor their lifestyle to save for a deposit.
I'm one of those near 40 year olds that wouldnt have 40k saved in a bank account that you dismissed on the The Right Hook or Last Word the other evening.
The guy was 40 , in a well paid job living in the South East and he did not have the 10% deposit required to buy a house.
I generously put the cost of a house in the South East at €200k and wondered why he did not have the €20k required.
In reality, a single guy could buy an apartment or small house in the South East for a lot less than €200k and the lender might make him one of the 15% exceptions.
If he or you have no savings at age 40, then you can't afford the repayments on a house. Allowing reckless lending and reckless borrowing will make matters worse for you.
By the way, I have been the biggest advocate of relaxing the rule that mortgages should be paid off by retirement. Which would be of great help to 40 year olds who have not yet saved the deposit.
Brendan