Home ownership will become a 'distant ' dream for an entire generation , with just one in five under-35s able to buy a house by the end of the decade , Labour claims today . A dramatic slump in property ownership among the young from 60 per cent to 20 per cent in a generation means a record number of people in their twenties and thirties are still living with their parents . Shadow housing minister Emma Reynolds warns five more years of the Tories ' 'failed plan ' will create a housing gap between those on the property ladder and millions forced to rent . By 2020 , just 21 per cent of under-35s will own their own home if the current trend continues , according to Labour . In 1991 the figure was 60 per cent . Latest figures show that just 31 per cent of people aged 16-35 owned their own home in 2012-13 , down from 10 per cent in the year before the last election . Labour warns that if the trend continues , it will mean that by 2020 just 21 per cent of young people will be on the property ladder . In a speech today , Miss Reynolds will say : 'Over the past five years , David Cameron has presided over the lowest levels of house building in peace time since the 1920s . 'For a whole generation of young people and families the aspiration of buying their own home is becoming a distant dream . Shadow housing minister Emma Reynolds warns five more years of the Tories ' 'failed plan ' will create a housing gap between those on the property ladder and millions forced to rent . ' A record number of young people are still living at home with their parents in their twenties and thirties because they ca n't get on the housing ladder . ' In 2001 more than half of under-35s ( 55 per cent ) owned their home , and in 1991 it was as high as 60 per cent . At the same time , the proportion of over-75s owning a property has risen from 53 per cent in 1991 to 76 per cent in 2012-13 . In a speech to the Town and Country Planning Association , Miss Reynolds will set out how Labour would try to reinvigorate the aspiration of home ownership . Overall , just 63 per cent of people own their own home , the lowest level since the mid-1980s . Labour claims that if the trend continues it will reach the lowest level for 40 years . 'After five years of empty announcements and failed initiatives the Tories are offering more of the same , ' Miss Reynolds will say . 'But they ca n't even say how their latest pie-in-the-sky scheme will work or how they will pay for the £8.6 billion cost of the supposed 20 per cent discounts that are on offer . 'Five more years of the Tories ' failed plan will see a growing housing gap , falling home ownership and unrealised aspiration for the next generation . ' She will promise that Labour has a plan to build 200,000 homes every year by 2020 . A Labour government would make tackling the housing crisis a 'national priority ' , giving communities stronger powers to build homes . First time buyers would be given priority access rights in new 'Housing Growth Areas ' while small builders will be given more support . Overall , just 63 per cent of people own their own home , the lowest level since the mid-1980s , according to the English Housing Survey . Labour is also promising a new generation of New Towns and Garden Cities . Miss Reynolds will pledge that Labour will recreate the post-war spirit of house building . 'Labour has developed the first comprehensive plan for a generation to tackle the housing crisis . A Labour Government will get at least 200,000 homes built a year by 2020 but we wo n't stop there . 'The next Labour Government will recapture the post-war spirit for building new homes and match that renewed ambition with a drive to build high quality homes and great places for new communities . 'While the Tories still believe , despite their failure over the past five years , that the housing crisis will be solved by the market alone , Labour is clear that to tackle the housing crisis there must be a much more active role for national and local government . '
In 1991 60 % of under-35s owned their home , falling to 31 % in 2012-13 . If trend of last five years is repeated , figure will fall to 21 % by 2020 . Labour warns of an end to the aspiration of buying a house to live in . Comment: