First-time buyers dominate property market for first time in a decade

First-time buyers (FTBs) are now outnumbering all types of property buyers for the first time since 1995, according to the Halifax First-Time Buyer Review.

The Halifax First-Time Buyer Review has revealed that the number of FTBs has risen by 2 percent in the last 12 months, an upward trend that has been evidence for the last seven years.

According to the review, 2018’s growth was at a slower rate than in the two previous years, but the overall numbers of FTBs has risen by 92 percent from the all-time low of 192,300 in 2008.

FTBs now account for just over half of all property purchases with a mortgage, a rise of 38 percent in a decade.

Average price and deposit rises

The average price paid by a FTB has gone up from £153,030 in 2008 to £212,473 in 2018, an increase of 39 percent. Meanwhile, the average deposit has risen from £21,133 to £33,252 in the same decade.

The Halifax’s review revealed that an FTB deposit in 2008 was 14 percent of the purchase price, rising to 20 percent in 2009 and now sitting at 15 percent. FTBs are also older than they were a decade ago – aged 31 in 2008 and aged 33 in 2018.

The first preference of FTBs is for terraced homes, then semi-detached properties. Those two types of property make up two-thirds (67 percent) of all first homes in 2018.

Healthy movement in this area

Russell Galley, Halifax’s managing director, said:

“New buyers coming on to the ladder are vital for the overall wellbeing of the UK housing market, and the continued growth in first-time buyers shows healthy movement in this important area – despite a shortage of homes and the ongoing challenge of raising a deposit.

“Last year was the first year that first-time buyers accounted for the majority of the market since 1995, which shows that the factors reducing some of the associated costs – such as continued low mortgage rates and Stamp Duty – are supporting the increasing number of people taking their first step on to the property ladder.”

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