Published: 7 Oct 2014 by Tom McCarthy

We all know it: house prices are out of control. It would take the average person 12 years to save up a deposit nowadays. And renting is pretty terrible too: renters now spend 40% their income on housing costs.

Terrifying.

The sad/rubbish/anger-inducing thing is that what you get for your money is often, well, pretty damn awful.

Here are five of the worst properties we’ve come across in our trawlings:

1. The £40k shed – up for sale in rural Devon.

Semi-detached house? What? IT’S JUST A SHED PEOPLE.

2. The £737 / month studio flat:

Even ‘box room’ is a generous description for this place. Somehow the price was hiked up to £737 a month, and eventually the council forced the agent and landlord to take it off the market. Thankfully.

3. For a bit more you can get this terrible delight:

It’s so tiny you have to stand on a fridge and climb up a ladder to get into the bed. And still (depressingly) 60 people had enquired about the property within a few days of it going up. All yours for £800/month (what?!).

4. Looking to buy? This garage flat went up for £125,000 over the summer:

We did the maths: this place is actually smaller than an official FIFA goal.

5. And the cherry on the awful, awful cake: the £40/month cupboard:

Apparently it’s a loft conversion. I don’t think we need to say any more.

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This is a national scandal. And every day at Shelter we see the impact over-priced, poor quality homes have on families up and down the country.

For decades politicians have failed to build enough affordable homes. And now it’s time to act.

House prices are out of control. We need to build more affordable homes as a country. And we need to build ones that people can actually live in, thrive in, and call home.

**If you are angry about this too, join our campaign today calling on politicians to build more affordable homes.
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Got any more ridiculous properties? Tweet them to us @Shelter with the #shoeboxhomes.