Average age of home ownership increases as affordability worsens, ONS finds

The average age of home ownership levels have increased by 12.5%, according to national figures. 

In 2022, over 50% people owned their own home (either outright or with a mortgage) by the age of 36. This has gone up from 32 years in 2004. This means there has been a 12.5% increase in the average age of home ownership within 18 years.  

The age at which more than half of people did not live with their parents went up from 21 years in 2011 to 24 years by 2021, which means the average age in which people have flown the nest has dropped by 12.5%

In 2004, 23.4% of 25 year olds owned their own home, but in 2017 this fell to 11.9%. 

According to an Office for National Statistics housing and affordability report from March, house buyers in England during 2001 could expect to pay 4.5 times their annual earnings to buy a house.

The Welsh equivalent of this was 3.3 times. With the affordability threshold being five times a worker’s annual earnings, house buying affordability looked promising. 

But by 2023, house buyers in England could expect to spend up to 8.3 times their annual earnings to buy a house and the Welsh equivalent was 6.7 times. This suggests that house buyers could struggle to access affordable housing.