Renting costs average 1st-time buyer £63k before buying

Renting will cost the average British adult more than £63,000 until they buy their own home.

New research has revealed that those who have bought in the last five years usually paid around £625 every month in rent.

As it takes renters an average eight-and-a-half years to save up to buy a home, those monthly rental costs add up to a hefty £63,225. The average cost of a home in the UK is £228,903, meaning renters have already spent a third of that on rent without ever seeing any long-term benefit.

Housebuilder Keepmoat commissioned OnePoll to carry out the research to examine the high cost of renting compared to home ownership, quizzing 2,000 adults who had bought or intended to buy in the last five years on renting costs.

Three-quarters told the study they believe it is "impossible" to save for a home while also paying rent with those who have managed to buy saying it took them almost five years to save a deposit.

Four in 10 needed help from their parents to get their deposit together while a fifth relied on an inheritance. A quarter admitted they'd moved back in with their parents to save on rent, with another quarter saying they'd considered that option but managed to avoid it.

Those who are still renting say they'll be saving for another four years before being able to buy a home.

Almost a fifth (18 percent) of renters have taken on two jobs to save for a house deposit, while one in four gave up holidays and a third ditched luxuries such as magazines and even Netflix to put all their spare cash into saving.

Tim Beale, Keepmoat Homes' chief executive, said: "For many people, renting is an important first step towards home independence.

"However, this research highlights the considerable cost of renting, and therefore it isn't surprising to see that for over half of people asked, they feel as if the dream of home ownership will never be possible.

"In reality, home ownership can cost less than your rent. With our average selling price of £156,000, the standard monthly mortgage repayments would make you approximately £100 a month better off than paying the typical £625 rent.

"As the UK's leading home builder for first-time buyers, with 70 percent of our customers falling into this category, we understand the challenges of saving for a deposit and also the options that are there to support potential home owners.

"This research highlights the importance of these initiatives but also emphasises the challenge of raising awareness about them and that home ownership is not a pipe dream."