The number of consumers paying off a mortgage has dropped to its lowest level since Q3 2011, according to the latest Consumer Tracker from Deloitte.
Their survey of 3,000 UK consumers also said that a greater proportion of those surveyed are now paying rent than a mortgage.
Deloitte said the shift in consumer spending to paying rent is being driven by the decline in home ownership, which stands at its lowest level in three decades.
The tracker also said confidence in London and the South East is lower than any other UK region, with the capital seeing the steepest decline in overall confidence, down by six points from the previous quarter.
Ian Stewart, chief economist at Deloitte, said: “Analysis of the media during our fieldwork period shows that stories on the slowdown in the London property market and concerns over the affordability of housing in the capital featured prominently, and this may have also weighed on Londoners’ consumer confidence.
Overall, consumer confidence fell by one point in the second quarter of 2015, driven in part by falling sentiment on disposable income, its first decline in 18 months.
The report said this may be because UK consumers have yet to see the full benefit of the recent rise in earnings.
