We’re fooled into thinking rent is a waste of money and a mortgage is not

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‘In the UK we pay a rent of about 40 per cent of disposable income compared to a 30 per cent average in the EU’ (Getty Images)

We are being fooled into thinking rent paid is a wasted expense and is better used to pay off a mortgage. Property ownership is a Tory gold standard started by Margaret Thatcher. But this ignores so many better and easily available alternatives.

Much of Europe proves another model is readily achievable by allowing local, not central, government to manage its housing needs and management. But it must be coupled with changes to our laws of tenancy.

It must begin with the security of tenure. This is why in Germany the average stay is between five and 15 years, whereas in the UK it’s about two years. But also consider why in the UK we pay more on rent. Londoners on average spend almost half of their total income (49 per cent) on housing, according to the Office for National Statistics, compared to 20 per cent on average in the EU, according to a Eurostat report.