Around 4.5 million – equivalent to 61 per cent – of all private and social renters in England never expect to buy a home, according to new analysis.

The analysis from housing investment and shared equity mortgage provider, Castle Trust of the latest ONS English Housing Survey shows that three million social renters and 1.5 million private renters don’t believe they will ever buy a home. Indeed of those that do envisage buying a home, half – around 1.5 million – think it will be five years or more before they will look to buy.

Castle Trust’s analysis also showed that owner occupation in England has decreased by 200,000 from 14.6 million in 2008 to 14.4 million in 2012.

However the number of private renters in England in 2012 increased to 3.8 million, an increase of 23 per cent from the 2008 figure of 3.1 million.