This article is an external press release originally published on the Landlord News website, which has now been migrated to the Just Landlords blog.
Many couples cannot afford to rent or buy a house and are therefore renting out a room in shared accommodation, revealed flat and house sharing website SpareRoom.
Why Flat Share Couples Can’t Move
This is sometimes the only option available to couples that live in expensive parts of the country, for example London or the South East. In both of these parts, rents are much higher than the national average, and even salaries.
For these couples, their hopes of getting married or having a family often have to be paused. Of couples living in shared houses, 44% said that their housing situation is affecting their plans to start a family in the near future. A further 36% said that their accommodation would affect their plans soon.
14% of couples think that they will never be able to buy their own house, and 13% do not believe that they will ever manage to afford to rent their own place.
Couples living in shared houses often struggle to save enough money to buy their own house. Just 21% were capable of saving money towards a deposit, as the increase in the cost of living means that they do not have enough spare income, despite comprising by living in shared accommodation.
Matt Hutchinson, Director of SpareRoom says: “It’s an unfortunate predicament that many couples living in flat and house shares can’t even afford to rent on their own, let alone buy a home together.”1
