People want to own homes because renting is unstable (most landlords are amateurs or accidental; there is an ongoing thread about a landlord who wants to sell her flat because she is going to have a baby and she needs the money to buy a bigger place; call me crazy but I don't really relish being asked to leave my home because my landlord decided to have a baby and needs the money). and because pensions are too low to pay for rent.
Contrary to popular belief, even Germans (50% home ownership) don't relish paying rent in retirement. However, as transaction costs are very high in Germany (esp if you sell a few years after buying), the model in Germany is to rent (which is quite pleasant) and then buy a house eventually that you die in. You would lose money if you did the property ladder thing in Germany so most Germans would prefer to be settled and comfortable before buying i.e. sure they will never need to move. My DH's german relatives all own, but crucially they have only owned one house in their entire lives. You can't say the same for most British people. Generally for most people nowadays, you are settled in late 30s. On the other hand, british people tend to buy as soon as they are able because firstly if you live in the SE, you are near where the vast majority of jobs are and even if you had to relocate, you can rent out the house. Its not that Europeans have a rental housing model or don't want to buy homes; its just that the market there is very different (and renting is quite OK so its better to rent than to buy a sub optimal home or to buy at a time in your life where things could easily change). The market is very different in the UK.