Housing Minister advises pensioners to leave property to grandchildren ====================================================================== ![Housing Minister advises pensioners to leave property to grandchildren](https://vardags.com/images/pictures/_360/2cf7e71cfc33877e6a561312fba77299.jpeg)The Housing Minister Gavin Barwell has [advised](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/10/09/inheritance-should-skip-a-generation-says-minister/) grandparents to disinherit their children and leave their property to their grandchildren instead. Mr Barwell revealed that his mother has disinherited him in order to leave her estate, including her £750,000 home, to his sons. He urged other grandparents to do the same in order to help ease the housing crisis. Mr Barwell, who took over the housing and planning brief in the summer, made these comments at a fringe event at the Conservative Party Conference. A [report](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/mar/14/young-families-priced-out-rental-markets-in-two-thirds-uk) earlier this year revealed that young families are priced out of rental markets in two thirds of the UK. The much-maligned 'millennial'generation have grown up a time of peak-high housing prices and many young people struggle to get on the housing market. More and more young adults in the so-called '[boomerang generation](https://www.theguardian.com/world/commentisfree/2016/mar/14/the-boomerang-generation-and-the-childhood-bedrooms-they-still-inhabit)' are returning to live with their parents because of unaffordable rents. Many young people have expressed anger that the more senior 'baby-boomers' were able to buy property as young adults and accrue wealth as prices surged over the years. Research by Age Partnership, a retirement income adviser, [found last week](https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/leave-your-grandchildren-enough-to-buy-a-home-tbrpll5sd) that English people aged over 55 currently hold more wealth in their homes than the annual GDP of Italy. Their housing wealth amounts to an enormous £1.5 trillion of equity compared to Italy's GDP of £1.4 million. By suggesting that pensioners offload their property to their grandchildren, Mr Barwell hopes to appease this inter-generational conflict. Mr Barwell's comments raised discussion given the Prime Minister's prioritisation of housing issues in the Conservative Party Conference last week. In her [keynote speech](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/10/05/theresa-mays-conference-speech-in-full/) There May promised policies that would help first-time buyers and build more homes to repair Britain's "dysfunctional" housing market. Theresa May is expected to present a new set of measures to help people get on the property ladder in the Autumn Statement next month. "Ayesha Vardag - Britain's top divorce lawyer." ![The Huffington Post](https://vardags.com/images/logo/huffpost.png) "Ayesha Vardag - Woman of the Year"![GG2](https://vardags.com/images/logo/gg2-3.png) "Leading, Magic Circle law firm."Mr Justice Coleridge "A handful of firms dominate the so-called 'glamour' end of the market ... Vardags"The Times "One of the best divorce lawyers in the country"Marie Claire "Ayesha Vardag - 'diva of divorce' for the world's super rich" ![BBC](https://vardags.com/images/logo/bbc.png) "Dr Stephen Bence is a financial genius."Lewis Marks KC "Ayesha Vardag - the Queen of divorce"Daily Mail "Vardags brilliantly argued my case to a resounding victory"Pauline Chai (client) "Britain's top divorce lawyer" ![The Telegraph](https://vardags.com/images/logo/telegraph.png) More Wills & Trusts news ---------------------------- [Record number of court challenges to power of attorney arrangements](https://vardags.com/family-law/power-of-attorney-challenges "Record number of court challenges to power of attorney arrangements") [Man finds €3.5m worth of gold in his inherited house](https://vardags.com/family-law/man-finds-3-5m-worth-gold-inherited-house "Man finds 3.5m worth of gold in his inherited house") [Housing Minister advises pensioners to leave property to grandchildren](https://vardags.com/family-law/housing-crisis-gransparents-property "Housing Minister advises pensioners to leave property to grandchildren") [The battle over Tom Clancy's estate](https://vardags.com/family-law/tom-clancy-inheritance-dispute "The battle over Tom Clancys estate") [Unexpected, inexplicable, unfair, and improper: wills and mental incapacity](https://vardags.com/family-law/wills-mental-incapacity "Unexpected, inexplicable, unfair, and improper: wills and mental incapacity") Articles by Thea Dunne ---------------------- [Bairns don't come first in child maintenance system, new research finds](https://vardags.com/family-law/bairns-dont-come-first "Bairns dont come first in child maintenance system, new research finds") [Alabama marriage licence prohibition rages on](https://vardags.com/family-law/alabama-marriage-licence "Alabama marriage licence prohibition rages on") [Housing Minister advises pensioners to leave property to grandchildren](https://vardags.com/family-law/housing-crisis-gransparents-property "Housing Minister advises pensioners to leave property to grandchildren") [Viacom shareholder lawsuit put on hold](https://vardags.com/family-law/viacom-shareholder-lawsuit "Viacom shareholder lawsuit put on hold") [The battle over Tom Clancy's estate](https://vardags.com/family-law/tom-clancy-inheritance-dispute "The battle over Tom Clancys estate")