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31 the average age which Scots think they can afford to buy a house

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homes for saleThe average age which Scots living in rented accommodation think they’ll be able to buy their first house is 31, according to new research.

The survey, which was issued to people living in rented accommodation across the UK, found that most Brits thought age of 33 would be the year they step onto the property ladder.

However, 16 per cent of respondents in Scotland (16.4%) don’t believe they will ever be able to raise the money to buy a home.

In Glasgow, 11.1% of renters don’t think they’ll be able to afford their own property with the figure rising to 20% in Edinburgh.

The average age for hoping to buy in Glasgow and Edinburgh is 32 and 31.

A staggering 65.7% of renters would pay extra each month to live with the ‘perfect flatmate’, with the average tenant willing to pay £1,147.80 per year if it was possible.

The research was commissioned by Spark Energy, a specialist energy supplier for the lettings industry.

Shaun Burnett, Spark Energy’s director of customer experience, said: “Our flatmate survey has revealed a number of interesting insights about the perceptions and attitudes of Scots living in rented accommodation.

“We’ve identified that 31 years old is the average age a Scot thinks they’ll be able to buy their first property and that around 16% see it as too expensive.

“The high percentage of people willing to spend more to live with the perfect cohabiter is quite the revelation and something which could become a trend.

“This information is really useful to our business through our focus on the rental sector, helping us to know customers which can only be beneficial to the service we can offer.”

Some of the other findings included:

  • Being clean and tidy is the number one attribute of a good flatmate in Scotland (as voted by 77.6% of respondents) while being able to clean was raised as important for 11.9% of people

  • Living with between three and four people is ideal for most people in Scotland

  • Over a half of respondents (62.7%) like the people they currently live with, while 10% of Edinburgh respondents didn’t like the people they lived

  • More than half of Scotland’s population (52.2%) who rent see face-to-face interactions as being the best way to pick flatmates while only 6% prefer using websites.

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