‘Silver renters’ locked out of home ownership will treble in 20 years

 The number of “silver renters” in England is set to treble to a million, as more people are leaving it too late to buy their first home.

Generation Rent, a campaign group, said the number of private renter households in England headed by someone aged 65 or older is set to rise from 370,000 in 2015-16 to 995,000 by 2035-36. It is a result of more people reaching their 40s without having stepped on to the housing ladder, at which point it becomes increasingly difficult to get a mortgage, the report said. This is because lenders expect that potential borrowers will want to retire halfway through their mortgage term, so are more reluctant to lend.

Pensioners who privately rent into retirement are significantly worse off than those who have paid off their mortgages. At present, around 1.1million 45 to 64-year-olds are privately renting in England, data from an English Housing survey shows. Dan Wilson Craw, of Generation Rent, said: “Politicians risk neglecting the vast numbers of people who are already too old to get a mortgage and face a lifetime of renting.”

Work in progress Sotheby’s in London is to stage an auction of Soviet art on Nov 28 to mark 100 years since the Revolution. It will feature more than 120 posters from 1920 to 1991, with estimates ranging from £1,000 to £3.5m.