EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
1. The Housing Aspirations Study aims to gain a better understanding of the immediate and longer-term future housing aspirations of households in Scotland. The research comprised a quantitative survey, covering a representative survey of adults in Scotland; qualitative in-depth interviews; and a literature review. The findings from the research are summarised below.
Current housing arrangements
2. Owner-occupiers were more likely than other tenure groups to live in a house, have a higher income and live in rural areas. Private renters had a young age profile and were most likely to live in a flat and in large urban areas. Social renters were least likely to be in work and more likely to have a serious medical condition or disability.
3. Social renters were most likely to receive help with the cost of their home (most commonly Housing Benefit), while private renters were most likely to say they had difficulty paying housing costs.
Attitudes to current home
4. People were generally positive towards their current home. Two in three respondents were very satisfied with their home overall. Levels of satisfaction were lower amongst those who rented (in particular social renters), those living in a flat and younger people.
5. The majority of respondents thought their current home was in excellent or very good condition. Social renters and those in a flat were more likely than respondents in any other type or tenure to say the condition of their home was poor or very poor.
6. Asked about specific aspects of their home, home owners tended to be more positive than renters towards aspects of the home itself and the neighbourhood, but attitudes to location and housing costs were similar. Overall, the three most important aspects of a home were proximity to services, the neighbourhood and the general condition of their property.
7. The qualitative research explored people's concept of a good or bad neighbourhood, and found three key elements: access to services and amenities, proximity to family and friends, and issues of security (personal safety and fear of crime). Differences in how these issues were prioritised appeared to vary according to age, with older participants concerned about security and access to services such as schools and GPs, while younger participants prioritised access to work and social amenities. Overall, however, security and fear of crime were important elements, which often prompted a move to a different area.
Past housing arrangements
8. The length of time that respondents had lived in their current property varied with tenure and life stage. Owners and older/retired respondents were more likely to have lived in their current home for more than 20 years. Private renters and younger people were more likely to have stayed in their home for a year or less.
9. Respondents were less likely to have owned their previous home than their current home, and the majority of those who were renting from a private landlord in their previous home became owner-occupiers when they moved to their current home. This confirms that many private tenants are able to make the transition from renting to owning.
10. Most respondents said that they had wanted to make their last move, although three in ten said it was because they had had to move, generally because of changing circumstances. The qualitative research confirmed that moves were often driven by life events, including changes to family composition, working arrangements or health status.
11. The qualitative interviews identified a strong pattern between participants' current housing tenure and the tenure associated with their childhood, particularly amongst social housing tenants.
12. Satisfaction with specific moves enabled mapping of housing 'pathways' and indicated several pathways - positive, negative, stable and unstable. The range of tenures, housing types and locations involved in each of the pathways indicated the diverse nature of satisfaction with housing experiences, and also showed that housing aspirations can change over time, in line with changing circumstances and life stages,.
Housing preferences
13. Only one in ten respondents said they would ideally prefer to rent their home; the majority said they would prefer to own. Almost all owner-occupiers, four in five private renters and three in five social renters said they would prefer to own their home.
14. Financial issues (investment or a better use of money) were most likely to be the reasons given for preferring owning to renting, and respondents in all tenure groups agreed that buying a home was more cost effective than renting. Private renters in particular were attracted to the perceived financial advantages of owning. In the qualitative interviews, owner occupation was positively associated with investment opportunities and associated status, independence and flexibility.
15. However, respondents acknowledged that renting could give security and that there could be good quality social housing available; social renters were more positive than private renters towards these aspects of renting. In the qualitative interviews, renting was seen as affordable and giving reduced responsibility for maintenance. In addition, there were some concerns that owning a home could be financially risky, again particularly among social renters. When asked specially whether they would like to buy their current home, social renters were equally split between those who would and would not like to.
16. External views of tenures tended to be more negative than assessments from participants currently within the tenure, demonstrating potential for improving wider perceptions and increasing awareness of housing options.
17. Preferences for property type appeared to vary according to age. While there was a general preference for a house rather than a flat, both older and younger respondents saw advantages of living in a flat, for reasons of location, security and housing costs. Some older people also favoured rented or supported housing, rather than continuing to maintain their own home.
Desire to move
18. Over half of respondents (57%) said that they would like to move at some point in the future, and a further 9% thought they would have to move. The desire to move was highest amongst private renters and younger people.
19. Overall, the most frequent reason for a future move was to change the size of property. Young families were most likely to aspire to a larger property, while older/retired respondents were more likely to say they wanted a smaller property. The most common reason given by renters for a future move was to buy or own their home, confirming the widespread desire for home ownership.
20. One in three of all respondents aspired to "move up the property ladder" in their future home, while just 3% expected to move "down the ladder". More than four in five private renters aspired to moving "up the ladder".
21. Overall, 15% of respondents expected to move at least twice in the next 10 years, and this was higher among private renters than other tenures. Respondents tended to view their next home as similar to their current home, whereas they often aspired to a greater change (in tenure and/or property type) in their "future home".
22. However, one in three respondents saw no reason to move in the future. This confirms that the housing aspiration of a third of Scottish people is to stay in their current home. Reasons for staying in current properties included a lack of impetus for change, disincentive of costs associated with moving, as well as general satisfaction with current housing.
Desired future property
23. Respondents were asked about the home they would like to be living in ten years in the future. Home ownership was the most desired tenure, and many wanted to own outright. Most respondents wanted their future home to be a house, and just over half wanted to live in the same local authority. Private renters were most likely to want to move outside Scotland.
24. Qualitative participants held mixed views about which aspects of housing they would prioritise or were willing to compromise on. Although most people expressed a preference for owning over renting, tenure did not emerge as a key aspect; location/neighbourhood and property type were more frequently mentioned as priorities. However, this may relate as much to perceptions of limited opportunities to move between tenures, rather than any lack of importance associated with tenure as a housing priority.
25. The qualitative interviews also highlighted a distinction between participants' preferences for tenure, housing type and location, and their professed housing aspirations, the latter often being more modest. This may in part be due to difficulties associated with thinking in abstract rather than critical terms, but it may also provide an indication that people are either content with their current home, or are realistic about their housing opportunities; the research asked respondents to "think realistically" when answering about their aspirations.
26. Three quarters felt that they were likely (very or slightly) to achieve their desired future move. Finance was seen as the main barrier to achieving housing aspirations, along with availability of suitable housing (mentioned most frequently by social renters), employment, health and age.
27. Some respondents were determined to achieve their housing aspirations, and the survey observed both an acknowledgement that sacrifices would need to be made to realise aspirations, and a desire to do so. At the same time, the qualitative research found that some people attached a lower importance on achieving their current housing aspirations, either because they were mostly happy with their current arrangements, or because they recognised that their housing needs - and therefore their aspirations - were likely to change over time. Housing preferences were also sometimes seen as lower in priority than other issues such as family, health or employment; this was particularly the case among younger people.