Millennials spending triple on housing than grandparents

David Willetts has revealed that millennials are spending three times more of their income on housing than their grandparents generation.

The former Conservative minister says that the figures indicate a ‘housing catastrophe’. The former minister also warned that, despite spending more on housing, those aged between 18-36 are more likely to live in worse accommodation and face longer commutes to work. This last point translates to commuting for the equivalent of three days a year more than their parents.

The Resolution Foundation research also revealed that those aged 30 are half as likely to own their own home compared to their parents and four times more likely to private rent than two generations previous.

Willetts said: “This is the biggest problem facing the younger generation. It depresses their living standards and quality of life. It is very important for the Tory party to open up the route to home ownership again. A lot of twentysomethings also have horror stories of bad landlords and we need to help them as well.”

Wallet’s comments coincide with the launch of a Resolution Foundation report, Home Affront: housing across the generations.

Responding to the Resolution Foundation report, Dan Wilson Craw, director of campaign group Generation Rent, said: “Young adults have been hit with a double whammy of rising house prices which make ownership unaffordable, and rising rents which they cannot escape. The chorus of demands on the government to act decisively is getting louder, but it’s important not to neglect the growing numbers of older renters. Because getting a mortgage becomes harder beyond the age of 40, many face a lifetime of renting. Millions of people, young and old, are stuck renting for the foreseeable future and they need much greater security than the market currently provides, with protection from eviction and rising rents.”