The changing links between parental housing tenure and young adults’ homeownership in England and Wales

This study examines the inter-generational transmission of (dis)advantage through the housing system by analysing how young adults’ chances of entering homeownership are linked to the housing tenure of their parents. Data are drawn from the Office for National Statistics Longitudinal Study (ONS LS), which provides a unique opportunity to assess whether young adults’ housing careers have become more or less strongly influenced by their family background over time. The results show that people born between the late 1950s and the early 1980s were significantly less likely to be homeowners when aged 30-34 if their parents were tenants than if their parents were owner-occupiers. Importantly, the negative influence of parental tenancy on young adult homeownership has strengthened slightly over time.