Mortgages - How Times Have Changed

A recent study from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) has shown that homeowners in the UK are spending more of their budgets on the homes themselves, with less being dedicated to food and drink.

The survey focused on a wide range of information regarding household income, taking into account a range of lifestyle factors and their impact on spending habits â " as compared to data collected 50 years ago.

And whilst annual incomes have seen increases during that time, UK homeowners have felt more of a squeeze in recent times, with increases in mortgages as a result of credit crunches forcing changes in spending habits.

According to the statistics gathered, the average weekly cost of mortgages for properties across the UK was  132. But the results also showed regional differences in rent, with the highest mortgage bills present in London â " with some costing as much as  174 per week.

The research helped to identify areas where attitudes to spending have changed.

Top of the lists of data collected in both 1957 and 2006 were housing-related costs, with interest payments for mortgages accounting for 19% of spending in 2006.

But the statistics for food and drink items revealed a dramatic difference in household allocations, with spending on food and drink seeing a dip from a third of the average weekly budget to just 15%.

There were differences in other areas, such as transport â " which saw an increase by half that of 1957 â " however, despite this increase there was a reduction in spending on fuel and power, which statistics revealed had halved since 1957.

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