Loans for Homes. Halifax Building Society mortgage leaflet, 1935

This Halifax Building Society mortgage leaflet entitled ‘Loans for Homes’ was published in 1935. Before the 1930s, most British people rented accommodation. In the early part of the decade, the building society mortgage system developed. Mortgage interest rates were reduced and the repayment period increased. For the first time, people in the lower-middle and upper-working class had the chance to own their own house. This leaflet explained the benefits of mortgages to this new group of customers. During the 1930s, a standard three-bedroom house would have cost about £650. Even in London, a house costing less than £500 would have been affordable to a bank clerk or a skilled manual worker.