31% of renters claim that renting gives them more freedom than those who own their own home, while 12% no longer aspire to the status symbol of owning their own home, according to new research from Unbiased.co.uk.

6% of renters have been put off buying due to the property market crash and 7% have been financially unable to buy due to the property market crash.

Of 1.75 million homeowners, 32% stated they had not considered doing this in the past. A further 31% said they would consider selling their home and renting but aren’t able to do so at the moment as the price they would get for selling their home is too low.

Only 13% of renters say the property market crash has not put them off buying, and they are still hoping to purchase their own house. Owning their own home appears most important to the younger generations, with 22% of those aged between 18 to 34 still hoping to buy. The older generations of renters are less interested in buying after the property market crash, with only 6% of those aged between 35 to 54 and 2% of those aged 55 or over stating they are still keen to stop renting and buy their own home.

Karen Barrett, chief executive of Unbiased.co.uk, said: “While there are mixed messages as to whether house prices are now starting to rise again