By Stephen Tasker, founder of Getting On The Ladder
For younger Britons today, the housing ladder feels less like an ascent to security and more like a gauntlet. As homeownership slips out of reach, a widening social and political fault line is emerging: homeowners versus Generation Rent.
Breaking Down the Data
Homeownership among young adults has declined sharply. In 2022–23, just 39% of individuals aged 25–34 owned their home, down from 59% in 2000, according to Fairer Share. That decline is especially stark in urban centres: only 26% of young Londoners now own with a mortgage, compared with 36% elsewhere.
First-time buyers face mounting barriers. In 2024, the average first-time buyer age was 33.5 years, and they paid £311,034 per home after saving an average deposit of £61,090, reports Finder. Meanwhile, the total number of first-time buyer mortgage purchases dropped to 282,000 in 2023, the lowest since 2013, according to the ONS.
Renters, meanwhile, are under increasing pressure. Between 2022 and 2025, average rents rose 21%, reaching £1,283 per month, compared to £1,154 for mortgage holders. Renters now spend around 34% of their income on housing, versus 19% for homeowners, according to MoneyWeek’s analysis. A Barclays report adds that renters spend 30.8% of income on housing compared to 26.6% for homeowners, and just 12% expect to buy within a year. For the youngest renters, the burden is greatest: those aged 16–24 spend nearly 46.5% of their income on housing, according to Alan Boswell Group.
Politics at Play
These figures have political resonance. Homeownership long drove voting behaviour, but now renters, particularly those who feel the housing system is rigged, are forging a distinct political identity. The shift in mortgage patterns—from London to the South East and beyond—suggests a geographic as well as generational realignment, as noted in the latest ONS housing analysis.
What’s Lost When Ownership Falters
The decline in homeownership is more than financial. A 2017 Institute for Fiscal Studies study found that only 35% of 25–34-year-olds owned a home, down from 55% in 1997. This comes despite home prices rising over 170% in real terms since 1997 (and in London by 253%) while incomes grew just 19%.
Young people are also increasingly reliant on familial support. As the Financial Times notes, the so-called “Bank of Mum and Dad” has become one of the UK’s largest lenders, underscoring how children’s housing opportunities now hinge on parental wealth.
Beyond Ownership: Building Equity in Society
Homeownership is more than financial capital; it is political capital. When access narrows unfairly, the voices of countless young adults go unheard. Renting becomes not only a personal financial burden but also a structural disadvantage in public life.
Smarter housing policy must recognise that simply building more homes without reforming access will not reverse the renter–owner divide. Whether through rethinking stamp duty, tackling speculative development, or revisiting the mortgage market for younger buyers, closing the gap will require systemic change rather than piecemeal fixes.
Conclusion: Reframing the Rung
Britain’s housing ladder still stands, but its rungs are uneven, brittle, and often out of reach for far too many. The consequences of this divide are not just financial; they are political, cultural, and generational.
The question now is whether policymakers can narrow this divide, or whether Britain will continue to harden into a country of property haves and have-nots. For Generation Rent, the stakes could not be higher.
Author Bio
Stephen Tasker is a housing market commentator and founder of Getting On The Ladder, a platform dedicated to helping first-time buyers navigate mortgages, deposit options, and regional affordability challenges. With experience in financial journalism and housing research, he brings clarity and insight to the challenges facing Generation Rent.
