Where baby boomers are refusing to downsize – and fuelling a housing shortage

Young stuck in expensive rental sector as pensioners hold on to family-sized homes

More than four fifths of baby boomer households have spare bedrooms that are being left unused as the young bear the brunt of the housing crisis. 
Pensioners are clinging to their family-sized homes long after the children have moved out, with 84.1pc of households where an over-65-year-old was the main resident considered under-occupied in the most recent census.
Among households where the main resident was aged between 25 and 34, the under-occupied rate falls to 53.3pc.
There are now just under 9.8 million households across England with at least two spare bedrooms, separate data from the latest English Housing Survey (EHS) shows. This is up 1.7 million in a decade, and means at least 19.6 million rooms are going unused and are locked out of the housing market.
Declining affordability has made home ownership the privilege of older generations. Last year, 35.6pc of all owner occupiers were over the age of 65 – up from 24pc 20 years ago.
The young, meanwhile, face an increasingly merciless rental market. Almost two thirds of private renters are under the age of 45. Average monthly rents in England have soared by £300 over the past 10 years, crossing £1,000 for the first time in 2022/23, according to the EHS. 
The neighbourhood of Whitby & Stanney Woods, to the south of Ellesmere Port in Cheshire, has the highest rate of households with an unused bedroom, at 97.8pc.
Ten miles to the north, on the Wirral, the Poulton, Raby Mere & Thornton Hough area had the second-highest proportion at 97.7pc. Ingleby Barwick West & South, to the south of Stockton-on-Tees in County Durham, came a close third at 97.7pc.
Six of the top 10 areas were in the North East and North West.
The lowest rate of excess bedrooms among households where the main resident was of retirement age was Leicester city centre, at 27pc. Of the 25 neighbourhoods with the lowest share of under-occupied households, 16 were in London.
Part of the problem is the fact that downsizing often does not make financial sense for older homeowners. Lucian Cook, of Savills, said: “In order to make the most efficient use of our existing housing stock there needs to be a change in attitude to downsizing, not just among individuals but also policymakers.
“While housing policy initiatives tend to focus on getting younger generations on to the housing ladder, we also need to look at financial incentives for downsizers to free up stock, as well as greater provision of retirement housing that better suits the needs of downsizers and which the older generations aspire to live in.” 
Some have called for stamp duty relief for those selling their family home and downsizing to a smaller property.
The number of people living in homes that are larger than their needs will grow further over the next 10 years as population demographics shift, said Neal Hudson, of BuiltPlace analysts. Between 2011 and 2021, the share of the population aged 65 or older in Britain expanded from 16.4pc to 18.6pc, and now stands at 11 million people, according to census data. By 2031, they are expected to number 13 million.
Mr Hudson added: “There are enough bedrooms in England for everyone to have one and to have several million extra, but they are very unequally distributed. It is very hard to make the distribution better. The last thing anyone wants to do is kick people out of their family homes.”
Another part of the problem is that housebuilding targets are far from being met. Ahead of the last general election the Conservatives pledged to build 300,000 homes a year by the mid-2020s in England. But just 234,000 dwellings were added to the country’s housing stock in the 2022/23 financial year.
Earlier this month, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak admitted there was “much more to do” to help younger generations get on the property ladder, unveiling a bevy of new plans to “put rocket boosters” under construction in built-up areas.
The rule changes include telling urban councils falling behind on housing targets that they can only refuse planning permission on brownfield sites under exceptional circumstances, and allowing commercial buildings to be converted into homes without the need for full planning permission. 
Alistair Smyth, of the National Housing Federation, said: “We are facing a severe housing shortage in England which has been caused by decades of underinvestment and inadequate piecemeal policy decisions on housing and planning. 
“To solve the housing crisis this short-term approach must end. As we head toward the election, we need the next government to commit to a national, strategic long-term housing plan which is properly funded and based on measurable outcomes for people in housing need.”
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