A research firm, in its latest report, says that there is a considerable shift in renting patterns and that better off middle renters are snapping up properties from younger people.

This is all down to rising house prices, problems with getting mortgages and many builders are increasingly changing from just building houses to developing flats.

The report says that the proportion of private rented properties are on a steep incline and that those able to buy their own homes are at their lowest for the first time since the Millennium.

It warns that the UK is looking likely to mirror the European model of long term renting across all ages.

Their research shows that more and more older renters are renting the most reasonably priced terraced houses and rents. The impact on the younger generation is that they are being forced into family homes (house sharing) and out of the major conurbation areas.

Most middle aged tenants are between 35 and 55 years old and are mostly employed earning in the region of £20,000 to £29,00 per annum.

Managing Director of the firm, Nigel Wilson, said “A rapid expansion in the rental sector has, for the first time, reversed almost 100 years of rising owner occupation. Renting is no longer the preserve of the young career starters but we increasingly see groups of older people and people of varied wealth joining them,

 

“A prolonged stay on the bottom of the property ladder creates a shortage of supply for newcomers, forcing them to seek alternative options. This is amply demonstrated by a recorded increase in the length of residency for younger families in starter homes, rising to 11 years from five, forcing others to look to rent property as a first step.”