Nearly half of Londoners are living in rented accommodation and this will surely increase according to study.
On the basis of current trends, the Centre for Housing Policy at York university estimates that by 2040 up to one-third of 60-year-olds will rent privately. Government data show that at present just 4 per cent of pensioners and 8 per cent of those aged 55 to 64 live in privately rented accommodation.
The proportion of 25 to 34-year-olds who rent privately has been stable at about a third over two decades but has risen notably for 35 to 44-year-olds, from 16 per cent to about 25 per cent now. Young people also spend more on housing costs (a third of their income on average, the Resolution Foundation reports) than did youthful baby boomers (a fifth) and the rent they pay will often go directly to the pension income of their retired landlords.