A body representing eleven of the biggest housing associations in the South West has warned that building enough houses to replace properties lost through the Government's new Right to Buy scheme poses a big problem for the region.
Parts of the South West are already in housing crisis with demand far outstripping supply for affordable homes.
The region's house prices have skyrocketed by 14% over the past year to an average £305,173, according to latest figures by Halifax.
And building society Nationwide estimates that first-time buyers in the region face stumping up six-and-a-half times typical annual earnings to get on the property ladder and - and it is estimated that for some people that figure could be rise to around ten times annual earnings.
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The figures suggest that a 20% deposit on a home now equates to 110% of the pre-tax income of a typical full-time employee – which is also a record high and up from 102% a year ago.
It is the highest figure in the country outsider of Greater London and the South East.
And houses cannot be built fast enough to meet the needs of the region as it is, a problem that will only get worse if properties are bought out of the social housing stock without a pipeline of homes to replace them.
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In a joint statement, Homes for South West, said: "[It] typically takes 3-4 years to buy land, secure planning and build a new home, and in city centres in particular there is often no land available. This will create a significant problem when there are 4.2million people in need of social housing in England today, and we should be increasing the supply of homes rather than simply maintaining or even reducing it."
Homes for South West is an organisation made up of housing associations including Livewest, Sovereign Housing and Plymouth Community Homes, representing 500,000 residents with ambitions to build 25,000 homes over the next five years.
The Government's housing plans include an extension of the existing Right to Buy scheme in England, which has made home ownership a reality for two million households since the 1980s.
Extending the scheme could benefit up to 2.5 million tenants who would gain the Right to Buy. The Government says it will commit to the building of replacement social homes for each one sold.
However, critics have raised concerns that this may not happen in reality, based on past experiences.
The Local Government Association (LGA) says any houses sold must be replaced quickly, in the same local authority area and on a like-for-like basis.
The Homes for the South West group said its position is not an ideological one, but 'purely practical'.
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It said that it agrees with giving tenants the opportunity to buy the home that they have invested in, both financially and emotionally and welcome the government’s commitment to work closely with housing associations on the design of any new Right To Buy scheme.
However, it warned that any extension must be supported with an adequate funding guarantee that properties are replaced on a like-for-like basis. and today, and we should be increasing the supply of homes rather than simply maintaining or even reducing it.
And it is asking that there is a system of proper checks on the eligibility of the applicant in place, including details on who is funding the purchase and tougher controls over the use of the property after it’s sold to reduce conversion into buy-to-let in the private rented sector.