Published: 16 Feb 2015 by Tom McCarthy

You know there’s a housing crisis right?

Well it turns out that house prices have gone up. A lot.

But we wanted to give you EVEN MORE DRAMA

So here’s what the soaps would really be like if house prices in Soapland had gone up as much as in reality.

It’s not good news. Sorry Ste…

It turns out house prices in Fasset Square, Hackney – the inspiration for Eastenders’ Albert Square – have gone up 530% since 1995:

With the price of a home in the real Walford over 16 times the average wage, hairdresser Stacey Branning would either have been priced out of the area; or faced decades of paying sky high rents with no hope of a home of her own.

But dramatic house prices aren’t confined to the capital. In Salford where Corrie is set, house prices have gone up 233% since 1995.

It’s no wonder Corrie’s Jason and Eva are struggling with the fact they can’t afford to buy a place together.

It’s a similar storyline in Upton-by-Chester too – the home of Hollyoaks. Prices there have gone up 190% since the soap was first on our screens in 1995.

That’s probably why Dodger is having to leave town.

And last but not least: Emmerdale. In Esholt, West Yorkshire, house prices have increased by 165% in just 20 years.

Any new characters to the show are going to face years of waiting for a home of their own.

**So why all the drama?
**

Given most people want stable house prices how did we get into this situation? How did these nightmare story-lines become our reality?

For decades political parties have failed to build enough homes – especially affordable ones. Left to struggle with rising rents, across the country young families are watching a home of their own slip further and further out of reach.

This General Election we’ve got a chance to change the story.

Sign our petition today calling for politicians to build more affordable homes: http://shltr.org.uk/9kz

Or find out how the housing crisis is affecting your local area: http://shltr.org.uk/9l0