According to a survey carried from YouGov for the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), 85% of people say they want to be living in a property they own within 10 years.
This aspiration persists despite the credit crisis, which has hit consumer confidence and seen mortgage funding slump by two-thirds since 2007.
Owner-occupation in the UK peaked at 72% in 2003, and has fallen slowly but steadily ever since, hitting 68% last year, yet people remain optimistic regarding their chances of becoming homeowners in the longer term.
When the CML last ran a similar survey in 2007, the proportion who expected to be homeowners in 10 years’ time was 84%.
The latest survey revealed that over the short term, the desire for home-ownership has fallen slightly.
The survey showed 76% saw homeownership as their ideal tenure in two years’ time – down from 78% last time the survey was undertaken in 2007.
The figures suggest that this dip is mainly a result of a significant fall in short-term appetite for homeownership among the 18 to 24 age group, who simply see property purchase as remaining beyond their means for some time – although this is also the age group with the highest 10-year home-ownership aspirations (88%).
CML director general Michael Coogan said: “It is crystal clear that most people see home-ownership as their tenure of choice over the long term. But the unintended consequence of regulatory change is that it is going to be permanently tougher for people – especially young people – to fulfil that aspiration in the future, even if they are responsible with their finances.
“Home-ownership levels are already falling, and they will continue to fall. Is that the outcome that policymakers want? It is certainly not what consumers want, but it’s what they’re likely to end up with. We urge politicians and regulators to pause and think again about the cumulative effects of their well-intentioned but poorly targeted package of regulatory changes.”
