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Coronavirus: Home ownership aspirations tumble as recession fears mount

Home ownership aspirations have fallen during lockdown. Photo: Getty
Home ownership aspirations have fallen during lockdown. Photo: Getty

Home ownership aspirations have tumbled during the coronavirus lockdown as recession fears mount, latest research has revealed.

According to research undertaken by insurance company Aviva only 50% people who do not own a home believe they can get on the property ladder any time soon.

This is a steep decline from December when 68% of non-homeowners said they hoped to buy a property in the near future.

At the same time the number of people under the age of 25 hoping to get on the property ladder in the next five years also decreased from 35% in December 2019 to 27% in May 2020.

Meanwhile the number of households looking to trade up to a bigger property has also fallen from 10% to 8%, suggesting the current housing market is causing people to put plans on hold.

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The findings come despite some predicting that house prices could fall significantly in the coming months.

Housing experts are forecasting UK wide price falls of up to 13% as the property market struggles to rebuild during the coronavirus crisis.

Transactions are expected to be hit with high uncertainty, falling incomes and unemployment taking their toll.

Other predictions are more sober. Estate agent Savills said the hit to the market could be more like 5%, and a third of valuation surveyors are predicting that price falls may be limited to 4% or less.

Upmarket estate agent Knight Frank said it anticipated a fall of 7% in 2020, more than its earlier forecast of 3%.

Its data suggests prices have already fallen 5% since March, with a further downtick to come.

The agent said: “Our view is that as the market reopens in the next two months, the 5% fall in values we have seen since late March will be revealed in achieved pricing – and while there could be some further downward pressure through to the summer it is likely to be limited.”