Almost a third of people are struggling to afford their mortgage repayments, new research from the Office of National Statistics reveals.

In its Opinions and Lifestyle Survey, 43% of renters and 28% of mortgage holders say they are struggling to keep up.

ONS says this proportion appeared higher among certain groups.

These included those receiving support from charities (57%) and those living in a household with one adult and at least one child (47%).

Those receiving benefits or financial support (45%), Asian or Asian British adults (53%), and Black, African, Caribbean or Black British adults (47%) also reported difficulty repaying.

Almost half of respondents (48%) say their rent or mortgage payments had increased in the last six months.

Of those surveyed, those renting (42%) are more likely to report an increase in their payments than mortgage holders (32%).

ONS says this could be down to the number of renters spending a higher proportion of their disposable income on rent (21%), than mortgage holders on their mortgage (16%).

Meanwhile, those aged 25 to 34 are more than three times as likely to struggle to repay than those aged 75 and over, according to the survey.

The ONS data also shows that private rental prices paid by tenants in the UK increased by 5% in the 12 months between May 2022 and May 2023.

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