The chances of a young adult owning a home in this country has dropped dramatically over the past two decades due to high house prices, which partly explains why rental demand continues to grow, but home ownership still remains the “ultimate goal” for Generation Rent, according to a new report from law firm Collyer Bristow.
The report, which will be conducted annually, is called the ‘Home Ownership Attitudes and Aspirations’ and is based on the hopes of a panel of 20 to 44-year old men and women in London and the South East living in rented accommodation and in their own homes.
The report found that 73% of men and 57% of women hope to buy their own home within the next five years, while 29% report that home ownership in the same timeframe is unrealistic, with just 9% saying they have no aspiration to buy a home at all.
Younger adults, aged 20-24 year, are most hopeful of being able to one day acquire property, while just 59% of 25-34 year olds surveyed and 63% for 35-44 year olds said that they hope to buy property.
Alex O’Connor, partner in commercial real estate at Collyer Bristow, said: “We all know that there is a housing crisis in the UK and that it is particularly acute in London and the South East.
“We have seen developers bring forward new tenures, such as dedicated Build-to-Rent schemes, but home ownership remains the ultimate goal.
“It is interesting that all of our panel’s 20-24 year olds say that they will own their own home, only for those hopes to be dashed when the reality of buying a property hits home. That picks up slightly, perhaps as our panel start to marry and think about starting a family.”
The study found that price (77%) trumps location (61%) when buying property, while alternative property tenures are growing in popularity, particularly in Greater London.
O’Connor added: “The home market is changing rapidly with new tenures emerging and institutional money looking to change the rental market for the better.
“Whilst our panel might choose to rent for longer, home ownership remains the ultimate goal. The housing crisis is not going to disappear any time soon.”
