Less than a fifth of renters looking to buy

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by Gill Montia

Just 17% of England’s renters expect to buy a home in the near future, according to a new report from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG).

The study, which is based on the results of the latest British Social Attitudes survey, also reveals that 57% of tenants feel that rent levels in their local area are too high.

While 64% of renter respondents said it is easy for their household to afford the rent, 32% said it was difficult.

Most people questioned agreed that buying a home works out less expensive than renting, with 86% saying if they had a free choice they would choose to buy and only 14% saying they would choose to rent their accommodation.

The ability to move at short notice was seen as the main advantage in renting rather than owning a home (26%), followed by not having responsibility for repairs and maintenance (24%).

Also from the DCLG, the English Housing Survey Housing Stock Report, published this week, states that there has been a significant reduction in the amount of disrepair since 2001, particularly in private rented housing, although in 2009 this sector still had much higher average repair costs than other tenures.