In its The State of Ageing 2025 report, the Centre for Aging Better, reported that there are 8.7m homes in England that are headed by someone aged 55 and over that are owner-occupied (76% of households in this age group).
However, the report adds that 1.9m (almost 22%) of these ‘mature’ homeowners are living in homes classified as ‘non-decent’, meaning that the property fails to meet basic health, safety, and comfort standards, it is in disrepair, lacks modern facilities (kitchen/bathroom), or isn’t warm enough (poor insulation/heating), which means they are more likely to be damp or mouldy.
Interestingly, there are large regional differences in the condition of homes owned by people aged 55 or older, with only 12% of homes classed as non-decent in London and the Southeast, compared to 18% in Yorkshire and the Humber, the Northwest and the Southwest, and 21% in the East Midlands, according to the 2022 English Housing Survey.
With life expectancy in England currently at around 82 years, and with 3.1m people in England aged 80 or older, it is fair to assume that estate agents are likely to be flooded with probate sales in the next few years. With around 30% of this age group already living alone, a rough estimate would be that 1.5m homes could be listed for sale in the next 5-10 years. However, it is also very likely that well over 300,000 of these homes will be ‘non-decent’ and will need considerable investment before they are listed for sale.
As we have reported several times in PIN in previous issues, there are already not enough tradesman available in the UK to get remotely close to the 300,000 new homes per year target set by the current government, and there is about to be an increasing demand for plumbers, electricians, carpenters, plasterers, bricklayers and decorators, from the home refurbishment sector also.
Relatives inheriting homes will be in a hurry to get the necessary work completed so that the property has an acceptable EPC rating and can be listed for sale. This means that day rates for tradesman will rise considerably and, while AI forces millions of accountants, lawyers and software developers out of work, the most expensive streets in your neighbourhood will likely have less Mercedes parked on their driveways a decade from now, and a lot more Ford Transits.
