Street survey: Britons would rather rent than get a mortgage

Date:Tuesday 3rd March 2009
Author: Rachel Fletcher

Most people would turn to renting rather than trying to obtain mortgages, according to a street poll by Adfero.

The difficulty of obtaining a mortgage was cited by several people as a reason for turning to rent instead.

Altogether, 58 per cent of the 31 people polled said that they were more likely to rent than buy a house.

One respondent, identified as Nicholas, said that renting is "wasting your money".

But another, Adam, said that he could only afford to rent, a sentiment echoed by another respondent named Laura.

Last month, Abbey said that in many places it is less expensive for first-time buyers to take out a mortgage than rent, provided they have a deposit of more than 25 per cent.

The average monthly rent, outside of London and East Anglia, was found to be £429 for a first-time buyer property.

A mortgage on such a property would cost £378 a month if the rate were 4.19 per cent and a 25 per cent deposit had been put down.