Royal Mail’s inaugural Home Movers Study, which surveyed almost 13,000 home movers, found that 21 per cent of parents wanted a larger property to better accommodate their adult children.

A quarter of English adults under the age of 35 are currently living in their childhood bedroom, according to a joint housing report released last week by Shelter and KPMG. This figure could rise to half of all 20 to 34 year olds by 2034, by which time house prices threaten to quadruple.

The Royal Mail survey also found that half of home owners waited longer than they wanted to move.

Some 35 per cent blamed a shortage of properties to meet their needs, while only 15 per cent blamed the high cost of the next property on the housing ladder for slowing down their move.

Andrea Martin, Royal Mail’s managing director of data services, said: “It is interesting to see so many people buying larger properties in the expectation that their children will be living with them longer into adulthood.”

She continued: “Alongside this, patience is proving a virtue in the housing market with people prepared to sit it out to find the right home for them.”

While eight in ten homeowners were happy with the property they eventually bought, Londoners were the most likely to be dissatisfied. Five per cent of homeowners in the capital were disappointed with their new home compared to three per cent nationwide.

Londoners blamed fierce competition for putting them under pressure to buy properties that were not ideal.