Renting negatively impacts quality of life, stress and hopes for the future

The latest research by Zero Deposit, the tenancy deposit alternative, has found that those stuck residing within the rental sector believe they have a lower quality of life than homeowners, with tenants also stating they are under more stress whilst being less hopeful about the future.

Zero Deposit commissioned a survey of 1,005 renters and 1,005 homeowners, to ascertain how each segment of the housing market felt when it came to their quality of life.

The results show that when asked how their living arrangements impacted their quality of life, just 35% of homeowners answered between 1 and 3 – 1 being a very low quality of life. In contrast, 64% of renters answered with between 1 and 3.

What’s more, 20% of homeowners ranked their quality of life as a 5 – a very high quality of life – versus just 7% of renters.

When asked how much stress they felt under as a result of their living situation 78% of homeowners answered between 1 and 3 – 1 being very little stress – while only 58% of renters answered the same.

In fact, 25% of homeowners answered a 1, or very little stress, versus just 10% of renters, while 18% of renters answered a 5, or a lot of stress, versus just 7% of homeowners.

When it came to their hopes for the future, just 4% of homeowners answered a 1, or not hopeful at all, versus 10% of renters. In contrast, 22% of homeowners answered a five, or very hopefully, versus just 13% of renters.

Finally, Zero Deposit asked which factors had the biggest influence on their thoughts and feelings about the areas previously mentioned.

For homeowners, security of income was the biggest influence, followed by the level of income generated.

For tenants, the level of income generated ranked top, although for them, security over their long-term living arrangements was the second largest concern.

Sam Reynolds, CEO of Zero Deposit commented:

“Life is often stressful regardless of your living arrangements or what stage of life you are at. However, it’s clear from our research that those within the rental sector are largely less positive about their quality of life, under more stress as a result of renting and, as a result, have less hopes for the future. The results perfectly summarise the challenges for tenants; a stable income and certainty of living arrangements.

The build to rent sector is going some way in addressing this issue, but at the same time, the rental values related to these developments tend to be higher than the regular buy-to-let sector. So while it alleviates one concern, it arguably adds to the financial burden facing many renters.

It’s a tough place to be for those who don’t choose to rent as a lifestyle choice, as not only do they face ever increasing rents and the high initial cost of securing a rental property, but house prices also remain well out of reach for many, leaving them little choice but to remain living within the rental sector.”