Home means a place I feel safe and in my own space. I think a home can be just where you go back to at the end of the day, but a home can mean so much more to you than that. Right now, I have a home and it’s mine, but it’s not my home because it’s temporary. A real home is yours for as long as you want to keep it, and no one can take it away.
New research by Habitat for Humanity explores the hidden cost of housing.
Drawing on nationally representative surveys conducted in 22 countries and the views of more than 30,000 people, the research looks at the sacrifices people make to the impact on their health, financial security and ability to plan for the future.
Affordability
The most urgent challenge highlighted by the findings is affordability. More than a third (34%) of participants worry that an unexpected problem could put their housing at risk, while 80% say rising housing costs are making homeownership increasingly difficult. These pressures are felt most strongly by people on lower incomes, who are more likely than higher-income respondents to be dissatisfied with their housing and worried that an unexpected setback could threaten their ability to stay housed.
Sacrificing for housing
Housing costs can affect people’s lives long before they face the risk of homelessness. Six in 10 respondents said they had cut back on at least one expense to afford their housing costs, with some reducing spending on food, using savings or cutting back on social activities. More than a quarter (27%) had used savings or emergency funds, while 33% had reduced spending on social activities.
These pressures can leave households with less financial security and less ability to cope with unexpected expenses. They can also shape major life decisions: four in 10 respondents said housing costs make it difficult to consider starting a family, while 28% said staying where they live means giving up personal goals or aspirations.
Owning a home
Homeownership remains out of reach for many households, particularly younger adults and those on lower incomes. Half of renters in the UK do not expect to ever own a home, more than twice the global average of 23%. This reflects wider concerns about the availability and affordability of housing: 63% of respondents said there are too few affordable homes, while just 42% of UK respondents expect their housing situation to improve, compared with 68% globally.
The gap between incomes and house prices is also significant. In England, the median home cost 7.6 times the median annual earnings of a full-time employee in 2025, making homeownership increasingly difficult for many households.
