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'Living loners' pressure UK housing

18th December 2006 | back to article listings BACK    print this article PRINT

In 20 years time, the number of single person households will increase by 53 per cent as disintegration of the nuclear family will proliferate in the UK over the coming decades.

As the traditional family with 2.4 children declines and the number of singletons living on their own increases, the housing market will come under even more pressure as less people filling homes together.

By 2026 there will be 9.9 million 'living loners', equating to three quarters of the total annual household growth in the same time period, according to a new report from Alliance and Leicester Mortgages.

Similarly over the next two decades, the number of married couple households is projected to fall by an average of 34,000 every year.

Although this is mainly down to increasing numbers of divorces and people cohabitating, the proportion of families is still expected to drop from 20 per cent of all households two years ago to 18.5 per cent in 2026.

Stephen Leonard, director of mortgages at Alliance & Leicester, said: "Our Changing UK Household Market' report shows the demand for housing will increase over the next 20 years.

"Interestingly, the pressure will come from the changing make-up of households, as we see more people living on their own, and the concept of the traditional family home steadily being eroded.

"We can expect to see an increase in flats and converted houses in the future due to the rise in the one person household, as understandably, people living on their own will be less likely to splash out on a larger property."

In order to counter this splintering of shared living quarters, property developers, in cooperation with the government will be forced to build over 200,000 new homes every year. But as living loners come to dominate the future market, it is more likely that developers will concentrate their efforts on building loft apartments and studio flats.

This could spell a welcome opportunity for buy-to-let investors as living loners are more likely to want the flexibility of urban living and so would choose to rent as oppose to be saddled with a burdensome long-term mortgage.

Mr Leonard added: "We are currently witnessing a change in society that is set to continue well into the future.

"Mortgage lenders need to recognise that future generations of homebuyers will have differing needs and financial circumstances and will need to consider this when designing mortgage products."

This is a press release by Assetz also available at http://press.assetz.co.uk/articles/3171.html. Alternatively, please see our full press release archive.

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