The Royal fut coins Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) has said successive governments have failed to produce a coherent long-term strategy for housing.
The Rics housing commission said in a new report that some of the coalition's policies were providing short-term help for the house-building industry.
However, they went on to argue that ministers' lack of consistency over the past 50 years has exacerbated the failures of the market.
The current government claims that it is merely 'cleaning up the mess' left by its predecessor.