Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC): Enforced Deprivation 2025

One in four households find housing costs to be a heavy financial burden

Households were asked the extent to which housing costs and the repayment of non-housing-related debts are a financial burden to the household. The answer categories were ‘a heavy burden’; ‘somewhat a burden’; ‘not a burden at all’.

In 2025, over one in four (26.6%) households regarded housing costs as a heavy financial burden, slightly lower than the 2024 rate (29.5%) but higher than in 2021 (23.1%) before households began to experience the impact of higher energy prices. The proportion reporting housing costs to be no burden at all increased slightly from 22.8% in 2024 to 23.7% in 2025. See figure 6.1 and table 6.1.

One in five households find the repayment of loans to be a heavy financial burden

Of the households that indicated they had hire purchase instalments or other loan payment commitments in 2025, one in five (19.8%) households regarded the repayment of such loans to be a heavy financial burden, down from 22.5% in 2024 and 23.3% in 2023. The 2021 rate was 16.1% (before households experienced the impact of rising interest rates on making loan repayments). See figure 6.2 and table 6.2.

More than half of single-adult households with children consider housing costs to be a heavy financial burden

By household composition, the financial burden of housing costs tends to be higher for households with children. In particular, single-parent households are burdened the most by both housing costs and loan repayments. Almost half (44.7%) of these households consider hire purchase or loans to be a heavy burden compared with 11.6% of households with only two adults, with at least one aged over 65. One in two (55.2%) single-parent households consider housing costs to be a heavy burden, compared with one in six (16.7%) households composed of two-adults (at least one was aged 65 or over). See figure 6.3 and table 6.3.

One in three rented households find housing costs to be a heavy financial burden

Rented or rent-free households were more likely than owner-occupied households to consider housing costs and loan repayments to be a heavy financial burden. Over one in three (35.7%) rented or rent-free households found housing costs to be a heavy burden, compared with 22.4% of owner-occupied households. See figure 6.4 and table 6.4.

Seven in ten households living in enforced deprivation find housing costs to be a heavy burden

Of households living in enforced deprivation, seven in ten (72.6%) found housing costs to be a heavy financial burden in 2025, compared with two in ten (18.5%) of households not experiencing deprivation. Likewise, households experiencing enforced deprivation were more likely to report that the repayments of debts from hire purchases or loans were a heavy financial burden in 2025. Over half (52.6%) of these households reported a heavy burden in making these repayments compared with 12.0% of households where the household members were not living in enforced deprivation. See figure 6.5 and table 6.5.

Households with children more likely to have gone into debt to meet ordinary living expenses

Overall, 8.3% of households went into debt to meet ordinary living expenses in the 12-month period prior to their interview date in 2025, down from the 2024 and 2023 rates of 8.7% and 8.6% respectively. In 2021, 7.9% of households went into debt to meet ordinary living expenses. See figure 6.6 and table 6.6.

Analysis by household composition shows that three in ten (31.0%) single-adult households with children went into debt to meet ordinary living expenses in 2025. One in ten (10.6%) two-adult households with one to three children and 11.2% of other households with children went into debt to meet ordinary living expenses. The rates were much lower for older households, with 3.8% of single-adult households composed of one adult aged 65 or over, and 1.8% of two-adults where at least one was aged 65 or over going into debt in 2025. See figure 6.7 and table 6.7.