Published 2011 Price £9.99
The promise of home ownership has been at the heart of the UK’s political discourse since the mid 1970s, when only half of all households were owner-occupiers. Since Thatcher’s “right to buy” in the 1980, a long line of housing ministers from both the main parties have pushed for policies to get more people onto the property ladder. The net result, fostered by financial deregulation, was an increase in home ownership to a peak of just over 70% in 2003. However, home ownership is now on a downward trend, as a result of various social, economic, political and demographic changes. The talk of aspiration and security through home ownership has given way to serious concerns about widening housing inequalities, falling house prices, under-supply of new homes, and a shift away from reliance on asset-backed welfare and housing as a private investment. This report not only comprehensively documents and explains the decline in home ownership; it also explores the short- and longer-term costs and consequences for government, housing associations and the fast-growing private rented sector.