The biggest reason for not feeling prepared to buy a property was the financial implications of home ownership.
Some 40 per cent of households said they did not feel financially prepared to buy a house in the future.
Those under the age of 34 are more optimistic about their chances of home ownership, 65 per cent. But that positive sentiment dropped to 23 per cent among people aged between 35 and 54.
According to the report, more than 50 per cent of 33 to 54-year-olds have never owned a property.
Tom Stevenson, investment director for personal investing at Fidelity International, said: “Home ownership is deeply ingrained in the British psyche and the inability to get on the property ladder can be hard to accept. Renting can feel like throwing money away and the flexibility it offers is no substitute for the feeling of security that owning a flat or house can provide. These emotional considerations can matter quite as much as the obvious financial benefits of home ownership in recent years.”
Home ownership remains an aspiration for 14 per cent of 34 to 54-year-olds and ten per cent of over 55s share this goal. But 81 per cent of that age group who don’t own a home think it is unlikely they ever will.
