6.1 Housing and the household balance sheet

Today, with 65% of homes being owner-occupied – just 5% lower than at the peak of home ownership in 2002 when 70% of homes were owner-occupied – it is hardly surprising that considerable media attention is paid to the UK property market and the direction of house prices. For most people, their property is primarily a home rather than an investment – although some people do own properties for investment purposes only, for example to let for rental income. In England, about one-sixth of the 23 million housing stock is privately rented.

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MAN #1

I waited two and a half years on the council waiting list to get a flat and I was lucky to get one.

WOMAN #1

I'm hoping to study next year. Um, I'm on benefits, Income Support and I live in a council rented property.

WOMAN #2

I'm renting at the moment. I live in London. I've got - I'm Irish, as you can tell, but I do have a house in Ireland that I'm hoping to sell.

WOMAN #3

I rented for, I would say about 8 years and I just found that I was just - it was just dead money, you know. I basically thought no, now is the time to buy. But yeah, I've been a home owner for I think about 9 years now.

WOMAN #4

I inherited some money so, um, it was quite a good - it was a good investment really. Um, yeah, I mean rent's kind of dead money.

WOMAN #5

I was sick and tired of paying somebody else's mortgage.

WOMAN #6

We have a mortgaged property in Surrey and we've got another I think five years before, um, the mortgage finishes.

WOMAN #7

I've just bought a shared ownership flat here, so I'm part of a, um, a housing association company. I've lived there for about a year now.

MAN #2

It was actually a lot cheaper than, er, renting anywhere. So I mean that's the reason I first bought it.

WOMAN #8

When my marriage ended, the house came to me, cos I the child, I kept the child, so I had the house.

WOMAN #9

I rent a house cos I can't afford to buy a house basically, that's why.

WOMAN #7

I think everyone likes to invest in a security and I don't wanna be somebody that's retired and worrying about paying rent, that's the main reason I bought.

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If you own your home, what were the reasons behind your decision to buy? In this video a range of people offer their stories. What comes across is that owning your own property is a key aspiration in the life course and that it is better than paying money in rent for a property that someone else owns. What also comes across is that property and home ownership are subjects people in the UK are always talking about.