Home ownership has hit its lowest level since 1988, the English Housing Survey from the Department of Communities and Local Government has shown, with just two-thirds if people in England owning their home. The percentage of people choosing to rent rather than become property buyers has increased to 16.5 per cent, up ten per cent on a decade ago, and the end of the stamp duty holiday in April is only expected to make it harder for people to take their first step onto the property ladder.
The survey also revealed that many existing homeowners are being forced to give up homes they can no longer afford, and that the average age of the first time buyer, which stood at 25 in the 1980s, has now risen to 37.
Help could be on the way for aspiring homeowners, however, after housing minister Grant Shapps announced plans this month to build 80,000 new homes on government-owned land, as well as launching the NewBuy Guarantee scheme for buyers with a smaller deposit.
