By Nadeem Badshah
INDIAN families in the UK are the property kings, government figures show.
Some 74 per cent of Indians households are homeowners, a higher rate than white Britons at 68 per cent.
The figure among the Pakistani community is 58 per cent and 46 per cent among British Bangladeshis, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government data for 2016–2018 showed.
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The average across all groups for home ownership was 63 per cent, around 14.6 million households.
Jaffer Kapasi OBE, from the East Midlands Chamber in Leicester, said the priority of most Indians is to buy their own home as soon as possible for financial security as it will increase in value.
He told Eastern Eye: “It has become an obsession similar to an Englishman where ‘my home is my castle’.
“It is cheaper than renting in the long run, depending on the rate of inflation, interest rate and cost of living. And avoids the hassle of dealing with a landlord who does want to invest in rented property and maintain it in good condition.
“Indians do generally have extended, family so everyone chips in to purchase to buy a home with a huge deposit meaning less repayment in interest.
“Parents also believe having a good home will help in finding a good [matrimonial] match, while from an inheritance point view it makes sense to leave a tangible asset for the next generation to enjoy.”
Kapasi noted incentives offered by the government to buy homes. These include the Right To Buy scheme which enables council tenants and some housing associations to buy the council house they are living in at a discounted price.
The maximum right to buy discount is £108,000 in London and £80,900 for the rest of England.
Jo Sidhu QC, a leading criminal and human rights barrister of Indian origin, said the figures showed the culmination of decades of hard work and ambition of a migrant community “who saved their wages and aimed high”.
He told Eastern Eye: “When my parents arrived here from India in the mid 1960s hardly any immigrants owned their home. They lived in a tiny rented bedroom with their two children.
“Home ownership was always their dream. It gave them a sense of security and helped them to integrate and to feel part of British society. But home ownership is just part of the wider integration of the Indian community which has also proved its success in education, business and in the professions.
“All these achievements together reinforce our belief that the UK is the place we regard as our home.”
The success of Indian households bucks the overall trend as in every region in England except the North East, white Britons were more likely to be homeowners than all ethnic minority households combined.
And in every socio-economic group and age group, white British households were more likely to own their own homes than all ethnic minority households combined, the data showed.
Harmander Singh, a magistrate and homeowner in east London, said: “We have learned that in India, the older generation look after their kids who inherit their properties and look after them.
“People have an extended family who have properties, similar to the Royal Family in fact, pooling our resources.
“It is in the DNA. Even among the younger generation, when they get married they want their own home. Some would say it is materialistic, I would say it is sensible and that it is what I told my four kids, who have their own homes.”
