The degree to which young Rotherham people are locked out of the Rotherham housing market has been revealed in new statistics.

A Rotherham landlord was asking me the other week whether homeownership rates in Rotherham in the early to middle-aged adult age range had affected the demand for rental property in Rotherham over the last few years. I knew anecdotally that it had impacted the Rotherham rental market, but I wanted some cold hard numbers to back it up.

In Rotherham, most people would say that those born more recently are drastically less likely to own their own home than those born a decade earlier. If we roll back the clock to the Millennium we’ll see that this in the case.

How have things changed since the year 2000?

In the year 2000, 50.2% of Rotherham 28-year olds (born in 1972) owned their own home, whilst a 28 year old today (born in 1990) would have a 26.8% chance of owning their own home.

Next, let’s look at someone born ten years before that. So, going back to the Millennium, a 38 year Rotherham person (therefore born in 1962) would have a 74.1% chance of owning his or her own home and a 38 year today in Rotherham (born in 1980) would only have a 57.7% chance of owning their own home.

Since the Millennium, overall general homeownership in the 25 to 44 year old age range in Rotherham has reduced from 68.58% to 49.59%

If you look at the graph below, split into the four age ranges, it is quite clear to see the changes in Rotherham. The fact is the figures in Rotherham show the homeownership rate has proportionally fallen the most for the youngest age range (those aged 25-29 years old) compared to the other age ranges.

What factors may be causing this deterioration in homeownership? Those born in the 1980s and 1990s are going to university and therefore entering the job market at an older age. However, most national homeownership statistics of different age groups with the same number of years after they left education (rather than the same age) give an identical dip to the graph above.

So, what does this mean for the rental market in Rotherham?

There’s only one thing.

With the local authority not building council houses, housing associations strapped for cash to build new properties and the younger generation not buying… there is only one way that these youngsters can obtain a roof over their head and have a home of their own… through the private landlord sector.

This is why we take our job as a lettings agents so seriously.

With new tax rules and up and coming licensing rules, Rotherham landlords will have to work smarter to ensure they make the investment returns they have in the past. We aim to assist and help landlords in providing this important service to those who need a roof over their heads.

If you are a landlord thinking about expanding your portfolio or if you are wanting to get involved in the property market, please feel free to get in touch with Bricknells. We would be happy to give you any advice that you may need.