Number of FTBs surges along with energy efficient homes according to the latest English Housing Survey

January 28, 2020

The latest English Housing Survey has just been released and you’d be forgiven for thinking at first glance that today’s statistics from the government are largely ‘business as usual’ where the proportion of owner-occupied homes vs rental properties are concerned.

The data shows: –

  • A 64% owner-occupation rate, which is largely the same as five years ago. And the same goes for the percentage of private rental stock at 19% is roughly similar to 2014 albeit itself double that of the 1990’s

 

  • However, a deeper dive into the numbers highlights three big changes in household ‘behaviour’.

 

  • The number of young people owning a home (25 to 34) has bounced back from a low of 36% to 41% now

 

  • The under-utilised space in owner-occupied properties has risen amongst homeowners,  up 42% to 52% in the past twenty years whilst overcrowding in rented homes has increased.

 

  • Energy efficiency has improved dramatically. In the past ten years those homes with an EPC edging of A, B or C has improved from just 9% to 34%

Director of lettings and sale agent, Marc von Grundherr, commented:

“Despite all that we hear of the plight of the first time buyer, it seems that statistically speaking they’ve rarely had it so good.

Homeownership amongst youngsters is on the up and no doubt heavily influenced by Help to Buy, record-low mortgage rates and the Bank of Mum and Dad.

Either that or perhaps millennials have heeded the advice of consumer experts and some estate agents and have indeed cut back on avocados and trips to Ibiza, saving their earnings for a home purchase instead.

The even better news is that foot soldiers of Extinction Rebellion can now unglue themselves from various items of London transport, because housing, one of the biggest climate change protagonists, is officially significantly less harmful to the planet than a decade ago. This means that we don’t need to switch our central heating off just yet in order to placate Greta & Co.”

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