Getting married, buying a house and then starting a family was once considered the traditional trajectory in life.

But a new study suggests young people are becoming increasingly likely to become parents while living in private rented accommodation as they are while owning their own home.

Researchers from the Centre for Population Change at the University of Southampton said their findings show a shift from previous eras when parents were more likely to be homeowners.

They added that the study, published in the journal Demography, suggests that a “new family formation dynamic” has begun to emerge in Britain, involving a change in the relationship between owning a home and becoming a mother.

The study found that up until 2012 the likelihood of conceiving a first child was significantly higher for homeowners compared with private tenants, regardless of socio-economic or demographic status.

But since 2013, the researchers found a “clear change” in the relationship between owning a home and becoming a parent.

Professor Ann Berrington, who led the research, said: “Between 1991 and 2016 the percentage of homeowners having a first birth each year declined from six per cent to four per cent, while the percentage of private renters having a birth stayed roughly the same – at 2.5 per cent.

“In the 1990s homeowners were 2.5 times as likely to have a first birth, while in the period 2013-2016 they were only one 1.6 times more likely.”

Significant implications

The researchers suggest that the cost of owning a home is now in direct competition with the costs of raising children.

Professor Berrington added: “This disconnection between owning a home and becoming a parent has significant implications for parenthood in general.

“If it is the case, as we propose, that home-ownership is increasingly competing with the costs of having children, then it is likely that those who do manage to buy a home might well postpone or even forgo having children.

“So the families that people may have planned to have will be unfulfilled for many young people now reaching the traditional parenthood ages.”

More protection is needed for the growing number of families in rented accommodation, Prof Berrington said, adding: “The private rental housing market in Britain remains un-family friendly, unregulated, and insecure.

“Housing uncertainty among private renters might arise from the threat of evictions, unregulated increases in rental prices, and the lack of rights around property maintenance and enhancement.”

The researchers used data from the British Household Panel Survey (1991–2008) and the United Kingdom Household Longitudinal Study (2009–2016), and analysed a sample of women who were childless at the time of their first interview.

Radical change

The sample, of 5,082 women aged 18 to 42, were living independently of their parental home across 374 districts in Britain and were followed for an average of 3.6 years.

The researchers also looked at the difference of homeowners and private renters by age and found there was “no longer any significant difference” between the two and starting a family among those aged 18 to 24.

Additionally, the probability of having a child as a homeowner aged 25 to 29 has declined, and the authors believe this suggests it will continue to do so.

“This signals a radical change from the recent past, when buying a house with a partner was often experienced as the step before family formation,” they said.

Prof Berrington also called on the Government to implement policies to improve the “quality and security” of private rental housing.

“Policies need to recognise and address the large regional disparities in housing affordability,” she said. “For example, by improving housing availability and affordability in high-cost areas, while encouraging job formation in areas of the country where housing is more affordable.”