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Homeownership was once the defining milestone for any working adult with a stable income.
But soaring property and energy prices, job volatility and freedom of movement are slowly shifting the paradigm in Europe.
Homeownership rates are declining in nearly half of the countries surveyed by real estate agency Re/Max Europe in its annual European Housing Trend report.
The number of people owning their own house is down 2% in the UK, France, Germany, Romania and the Czech Republic; 3% in Croatia and Hungary; 1% in Greece; and a steep 9% in Turkey.
Whether the slide continues remains to be seen, but renting is already firmly entrenched, for example, across Europe’s German-speaking centre.
In Austria (48%), Switzerland (62%), and Germany (63%), most people don’t own their homes. Significant shares of renters also exist in Spain (25%), France (36%) and the UK (27%).
Financial barriers might seem like the main factor stopping people from owning their own home, but it’s actually one of many. Data points to a broader shift — one that’s also shaped by lifestyle, mobility and changing expectations.
What’s holding people back from getting on the property ladder?
First of all, 53% of those who don’t plan to get on the property ladder say it’s because they’re perfectly fine with their current situation, according to Re/Max.
The second deterrent to purchasing a house seems more psychological than practical: 21% people who aren’t planning on buying say it’s because they’d rather not have the “ongoing responsibilities of property ownership”.
The third reason is the price tag and the high upfront costs (19%), including registration duties and property taxes, which, in countries such as the UK, Belgium and Spain, range from 6% to more than 8% of the house value.
How long does it take to save up for a deposit in Europe?
There’s also, of course, the deposit: in Europe, it takes an average of 7.3 years to save up for one, according to the report, and, in countries such as Germany, that stretches to a full decade.
Many Europeans turn to the ‘Bank of Mum and Dad’ to help them get on the property ladder.
According to the report, more than a quarter (26%) of Europeans relied on a cash gift to buy their first home. The figure climbs to 38% in Greece and to 36% in Lithuania, while far fewer in Finland and the Netherlands (12% each) are fortunate enough to receive the same kind of help.
In Spain, Italy, France, Germany and the UK, reliance on family help sits closer to the European average, ranging from 20% to 26%.
Flexibility first: Europe’s nomads avoid the property ladder
Financial difficulties aside, in many cases, renting is a conscious decision influenced by lifestyle.
About 16% of people who prefer renting to buying do so to be free to move wherever and whenever they want.
The rate rises to 50% in Malta, reflecting the country’s large foreign resident population, and to 33% in Finland.
Millennials emerge as the most nomadic generation, with 22% citing mobility as one of the reasons for renting, considerably more than GenZs (11%).
Spain and Germany are the preferred destinations (22%) of Europeans on the move, followed by Italy (15%), Switzerland (13%) and the UK, which is level with the US (11% each).
Is the urge to buy bigger in cities or smaller towns?
Finally, people living in smaller towns emerge as the least motivated to buy a home, with 17% of those in towns with fewer than 10,000 residents claiming not to be interested in owning, higher than among those living in large cities (12%) or homesteads (14%).
Among city dwellers who are not interested in buying, 49% say they are content with their current living arrangements, slightly lower than the 52% of village residents who feel the same.
“Village residents are also more likely to value the flexibility of renting (15%) compared to those in large cities (10%), suggesting that in less urban areas, lifestyle choice rather than financial constraint may play a greater role in shaping housing attitudes”, says the report.
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