There are lots of reasons why it may seem first time buyers now aren't as young as they used to be. 30 years ago, the 20-25's were more likely to be in a steady job, or at university, or already married and had a family in the planning. There's also inflation, and more wealth now than 30 years ago. We have a lot more people here on our tiny island, and a lot less real estate to go around so of course now a days its competitive market for property, heck it's competitive just finding a good place to lease. In the 80's if you were making a low wage and had a family, you probably had a lot more access to finding a nice council house as well.

These days, you'd be lucky to get one after 5 years on the waiting list unless you had some kind of disability, or connections in the housing association. Thatcher allowed the selling of council houses, which has unfortunately lead to less housing for the lower working class. This being a tiny island, there isnt much room to expand on that. Most of the wealthy Londoner's now buy houses in places like my little seaside town for summer holiday. They are also buying houses up north. You also have a lot more immigration than 30 years ago, a lot more competition. Times have changed a lot in just 3 decades. The 20-25's now a days are not of the same work ethic and mindset. People are having less children, divorce rates are a lot higher and people are waiting longer to get married, etc. There are still government schemes through the council that help you with a mortgage loan on your first house buy.

It's not all bleak, and many 20 something's successfully own houses, you just don't hear about them because the media loves to make us all think the baby boomers are fucking us over. Me and my husband are turning 30 this year, we are doing pretty good. He comes from a low working class family and worked his arse off to get where he is today, I am a foreigner who has to pay out of her mouth and nose every 3 years to renew my visa with home office, had to survive with no access to benefits, no right to work ( I was granted that after I got married ) and I cannot vote. So, really it's not as bad as you make it seem. If people like me, and people like my husband can be where we are today at our age...anyone can with enough hard work ethic and responsibility. Problem is, a lot of people in their 20's these days, lack both and banks are not about to give a mortgage to someone with hardly a credit history, or history of being able to keep a steady job longterm and pay their bills on time. Be glad that here in the UK, banks accept benefits as a form of income toward a loan. You'd never in a million years find a bank in the USA that allowed anyone on welfare to get financing, on anything.