The English Housing Survey is a snapshot of how we live. Among other things, it tracks how homeownership rates, affordability and energy efficiency ratings have changed.
The latest survey, published in December, shows a continued reassurance in homeownership rates, with around 1.1 million more homeowners and 260,000 fewer renters than in early 2017.
Over the next few years we expect homeownership rates to continue rising gently upwards on the back of fewer new landlords..
These changes can be set against the continued desire among renters to own their own home in the medium term, suggesting changes in tenure are more about people’s ability to buy, rather than their wish to - something we don’t expect to change any time soon.
Around 60% of current private tenants expect to buy their own home one day, a figure which has changed very little over the last decade. Around twothirds expect to buy within fi ve years.
The latest survey also shows slightly greater stability within the private rented sector, with tenants living longer than ever before in their current home. Over the last decade, the average tenant stays an extra six months in their home.
Meanwhile, the average person has lived in their home for 12.9 years, down from 14.1 years in 2020. Homeowners have seen relatively steep falls in the length of time they’ve lived in their home over the last 10 years on the back of a strengthening sales market.
