We often talk about the housing affordability crisis and the associated economic challenges facing young adults as if they were the same in every developed western country. Insufficient housebuilding has sent rents and prices soaring, resulting in superheated housing markets that leave twenty and thirtysomethings forced to choose between a broken bank balance and broken dreams.
On the surface, the situation in different countries does look similar. In the US, rising rents and house prices have resulted in a cohort of young adults quitting superstar cities such as San Francisco and New York and heading for the likes of Austin and Denver. In Britain, those leaving London are increasingly heading for cities such as Bristol.
But, in case it isn’t immediately obvious, these migrations are not the same.