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New research reveals the UK’s Help to Buy hotspot

Research by lettings and estate agent Benham and Reeves has revealed which UK cities are currently seeing the most demand from homebuyers for properties eligible for Help to Buy.

With the current Help to Buy equity loan scheme expiring last month, the Government announced a replacement scheme to start as of this April. The latest version of the scheme is restricted to first-time buyers and includes regional property price caps.

Benham and Reeves analysed what proportion of Help to Buy stock was already sold subject to contract or listed as ‘under offer’ across 25 major UK cities and what this demand translates to as a percentage of all Help to Buy stock listed.

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Bristol is currently the UK’s Help to Buy homebuyer hotspot, with 60% of all homes eligible for the scheme already sold subject to contract or under offer.

Portsmouth and Swansea also rank high, with half of all homes listed with the help of Help to Buy already taken by homebuyers.

Oxford is home to the next highest level of Help to Buy homebuyer demand at 48%, with Leeds (35%), Southampton (34%), Glasgow (33%), Cambridge (32%) and Bournemouth (31%) also ranking within the top 10.

It’s a three-way tie for the 10th top spot, as London, Manchester and Liverpool all see Help to Buy demand from homebuyers currently sit at 29%.

Marc von Grundherr, director of Benham and Reeves, said: “While the stamp duty holiday has been a great way of boosting market health during a very tough period, further fuelling demand has only helped push house prices further out of reach for many first-time buyers.

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“This has made the aspiration of homeownership all the harder and it’s clear that many are reliant on a leg up via the Help to Buy scheme as a result, with high demand for homes that qualify in cities all over the UK.

“Of course, it’s fair to say that Help to Buy in its various forms has also helped drive demand with homebuyers purchasing property that they would otherwise have been unable to afford.

“So perhaps instead of introducing yet another demand-based initiative to artificially inflate house prices, it’s time the Government really start looking at building more houses if they do wish to ‘help those that need it most’.”

Source: Property Wire

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40% of FTBs in the UK have taken advantage of the stamp duty holiday

New research by regulated property buyers GoodMove has revealed that 39% of first-time buyers in the UK have taken advantage of the stamp duty holiday, and a further 8% have not yet bought a home but are planning on using the stamp duty holiday extension to do so.

Those aged 25-44 are most likely to have taken advantage of the stamp duty holiday in the past year at 42%, and 18–24-year-olds are most likely to say they either haven’t taken advantage of Stamp Duty when they bought their home (50%) and say they won’t take advantage of the holiday in the future (10%).

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House prices and deposits are at an all-time high now, with first-time buyers now requiring up to 20% of a property’s value for a deposit. GoodMove’s research found that most (53%) have saved for a house deposit by themselves, with a further 34% having help from their parents or other family members to secure a deposit.

Over a quarter (28%) of people have received money for their deposit through inheritance, 11% of Brits have taken out a loan to help them buy a home and 10% have received help from government schemes. Nearly one in ten (8%) said they have won a lot of money in the past and this helped them secure a house deposit.

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When asked what the most complicated part of the home buying process was, the top reasons were saving up for a deposit (33%), finding a good mortgage deal (32%) and the mortgage application process (28%). Just 2% of respondents didn’t think any part of the process was difficult or complicated.

Nima Ghasri, director at GoodMove, said: “First-time buyers generally have the hardest time buying a home, with securing a deposit and mortgage approvals among the hardest part of getting on the property ladder. In this campaign, we wanted to see exactly how first-time buyers and those looking to buy a home in the immediate future have bought their home and secured their deposit as well as what they found the hardest part to be.

“It’s great to see so many first-time buyers taking advantage of government schemes and also securing deposits by themselves and proves to us that the property market isn’t all that bad for first-time buyers and people can get onto the property ladder!”

Source: Property Wire

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New mortgage guarantee scheme set to be announced in Budget

A mortgage guarantee scheme to help prospective homeowners with smaller deposits onto the property ladder is set to be announced in the Budget on Wednesday 3 March.

The government will offer incentives to lenders in order to bring back 95% LTV mortgages which were removed from the market as a result of the pandemic.

According to The BBC, the scheme will involve the government offering to take on some of the risk that comes with low-deposit mortgages in order to bring them back onto the market.

The new scheme will reportedly not be limited to first-time buyers but there will be a maximum property limit of £600,000, and will be offered from April.

No end date for the scheme as been confirmed.

The scheme is based on the Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme which ran until December 2016.

Mark Harris, chief executive of SPF Private Clients, reacted to the news: “Turning ‘Generation Rent’ into ‘Generation Buy’ has been a focus for Boris Johnson for a while so the return of 95% LTV mortgages for first-time buyers doesn’t come as a complete surprise.

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“This, coupled with the extension of the stamp duty holiday, will result in a Budget which is a real boost for buyers.

“It is positive news for first-time buyers, particularly as it is not restricted to new homes, although critics may argue that it will only aid house price inflation.

“But without such a scheme would developers be so keen to put spades in the ground?

“The supply of new housing is nowhere near where it needs to be to satisfy demand.

“For those with little in the way of deposit, finding a 95% LTV mortgage has been pretty much impossible in recent months.

“The odd building society here and there has offered them, with Saffron building society launching at 95% LTV in June but it only lasted a matter of days.

“Furness BS also has a selection of 95% products but these are restricted to certain postcodes.

’The only other current option to obtain a mortgage at this level is to call upon a third party, typically a parent, to provide extra security in the way of deposits or equity within the ‘guarantor’ property.

“Not everyone is in a fortunate position to do so.

“The last time there was a mortgage guarantee treasury scheme was via Help to Buy.

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“The mortgage guarantee offering closed to new loans on 31 December 2016 (the equity loan continues, albeit in a revised form today) but by then, many of the high-street names had removed themselves from the scheme and ‘self-insuring’ their 95% offerings.”

Rightmove put together the latest figures on asking prices and how many properties could be eligible under the scheme.

Their data found that 86% of properties up for sale have an asking price of £600,000 or less, with the national average asking price for all properties standing at £318,580, a 3.0% increase from February 2020.

The national average asking price of a first-time buyer property is £200,692, which is 3.6% higher than February 2020.

Since the Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme was first launched in 2013, national asking prices have increased by 29% from £246,748 in October 2013 to £318,580 in February 2021.

Mark Hayward, chief policy adviser at Propertymark, added: “A government backed mortgage guarantee scheme will help first-time buyers get on the housing ladder at a time when for many owning a home seems an impossible dream.

“Alongside the potential extension of the stamp duty holiday that we have been calling for, this new scheme will go some way in giving some hope to first-time buyers at a time when the size of deposits required means they fall at the first hurdle.”

By Jessica Nangle

Source: Mortgage Introducer

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First-time buyer market share ‘stable’ despite rising prices

The proportion of first-time buyers taking out a mortgage has remained stable year-on-year despite increases in the average price and deposit, according to research by Halifax.

The bank’s analysis of UK Finance data estimated first-time buyers made up 50 per cent of all home purchase loans last year, compared to 51 per cent in 2019.

The proportion of first-time buyers purchasing with a mortgage remained stable despite the average price they paid reaching £256,057 last year, an increase of 10 per cent from 2019.

The average deposit paid by a first-time buyer also increased by almost a quarter (23 per cent) to £57,278 last year, compared to £46,449 in 2019.

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However, with the housing market effectively closed during the first national lockdown, the overall number of first-time buyers fell to 304,657 in 2020, down 13 per cent compared to the previous year.

YearNumber of first-time buyersAnnual changeFTBs as percentage of all home purchase loans
2015298,080-4%46%
2016328,51010%48%
2017345,9205%49%
2018353,1202%50%
2019351,260-1%51%
2020*304,657-13%50%
Sources: UK Finance and *Halifax estimate for 2020

The property market re-opened in the second half of 2020 but first-time buyer transactions were also down during that period, but only by 2 per cent when compared to 2019.

Halifax noted that first-time buyer transactions had bounced back “strongly” in the second half of last year by 52 per cent, from 121,050 in H1 to 183,607 in H2, following the reopening of the housing market from May.

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Russell Galley, managing director at Halifax, said: “Whilst these figures confirm the almost inevitable fall in the overall number of first-time buyers in 2020 – with the entire housing market effectively shuttered during the first national lockdown – they also underline just how strong the bounce back was in the second half of the year.

“Despite the obvious challenges presented by soaring house prices, not least the need to raise an even bigger deposit, first-time buyers still accounted for half of all home purchases, a reassuring statistic given their overall importance to the market.”

Luke Spellman, financial adviser at Spellman Financial Services, said it was unsurprising that the average first-time buyer deposit had increased.

He said: “This will mainly be down to mortgage lenders hiking the minimum deposit required from 5 per cent to 10-15 per cent for the best part of last year.”

The number of 95 per cent LTV mortgages has dropped dramatically during the pandemic.

Data from Moneyfacts showed there were eight products available at 95 per cent LTV at the start of December, around 2 per cent of the number available at the beginning of March (391) before the first national lockdown.

By Chloe Cheung

Source: FT Adviser

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First-time buyers losing interest in city living

City living is losing its appeal among first-time buyers, with the vast majority now preferring more subdued locations, Trussle has found.

As it stands just 29% of first-time buyers plan to buy in a city, compared to 53% in a suburb.

Miles Robinson, head of mortgages at online mortgage broker Trussle, said: “The pandemic has increased the financial pressure many first-time buyers were already feeling, as well as creating a seismic shift in what people expect from their home.

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“As a result, financial pressures and rising house prices, alongside a desire for more outdoor space, means demand in more affordable rural locations is currently outpacing that for urban destinations.

“But lenders are starting to return to the market with higher LTV products, which could make more expensive homes in the city more accessible again.

“And, we may see renewed interest in city living once the vaccine has been rolled out and things begin to return to normality.

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“As such, only time will tell if the current lust for country properties is a long-term trend or more of a spontaneous response.”

Higher house prices in urban locations are likely to play a huge factor in this trend, with 65% saying it’s ‘impossible’ to get on the housing ladder.

The research found that the average budget for a first home was £174,266.

BY RYAN BEMBRIDGE

Source: Property Wire

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First-time buyers commit to homeownership despite pandemic

The pandemic has strengthened the resolve of first-time buyers who have become more determined to follow their homeownership dreams and save more to get a foot on the housing ladder according to new research.

Three in five (61%) of respondents said that buying a home is more important to them now than it was at the start of the pandemic in March. The research, commissioned by Yorkshire Building Society, shows that over a third expected to buy their home sooner due to the pandemic and nearly half said they had been able to save more for their deposit as a result of the impact of COVID-19.

The research shows that buyers still face challenges when securing their first home. With the average monthly saving for those wanting to buy their first home now standing at £336, Yorkshire Building Society has estimated it will take a single person seven years and five months to save a 15% deposit for the average first-time buyer home, which is valued at £198,512.

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In order to meet the demands for a higher deposit, half of first-time buyers are looking for financial help from relatives. The number seeking support increases to 59% for those buying in the capital.

Ben Merritt, mortgages acquisition manger at Yorkshire Building Society, said: “Getting on the housing ladder seems to be more important now than it ever was. Whether it’s being in shared rented accommodation whilst juggling home and work life, or spending lockdown back in the family home, the pandemic has clearly increased the resolve of first-time buyers who have increased their savings and are more determined than ever to buy their first home.

“It’s a real priority and life ambition for many people, but getting there still remains a challenge which is why we are seeing many lean on relatives for support with deposits. Despite the lower availability of higher LTV products, there are options available to first-time buyers and so it pays to do your research to help you get the support you need.”

Source: Property Wire

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Boris Johnson plans low deposit mortgage scheme

Prime minister Boris Johnson has vowed to create ‘Generation Buy’ with a low deposit mortgage scheme that he says could be ‘revolutionary’ for young people.

First-time buyers have been finding it particularly hard to buy a property since the pandemic began as lenders have cut maximum loan to values (LTVs), meaning they require a bigger deposit to buy a home.

The stamp duty holiday in England and Northern Ireland was also granted to landlords and second home owners, further squeezing those looking to buy their first home as house prices have been pushed up and demand has increased.

In an interview with the Telegraph before the start of the Conservative Party conference, Johnson said a “huge” number of people were excluded from owning a home and he wanted to solve the problem with a mortgage scheme that permitted deposits as little as 5%.

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Speaking to the newspaper he said: “I think a huge, huge number of people feel totally excluded from capitalism, from the idea of home ownership, which is so vital for our society.

“And we’re going to fix that – Generation Buy is what we’re going for.”

According to the report, Johnson has asked his ministers to work on a scheme to encourage the availability of long-term fixed deals with 5% deposit mortgages.

The government withdrew the Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme at the end of 2016 which offered lenders the option to obtain a guarantee on a 95% mortgage.

If the borrower defaulted on the loan, the government would share in some of the losses.

In the two years it was available, the scheme helped to more than double the amount of 95% LTV deals available on the market.

Written by: Samantha Partington

Source: Your Money

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Rise in first-time buyers searching for buy-to-let properties

Demand has grown among first-time buyers who want to enter the buy-to-let market, according to Legal & General Mortgage Club.

Data from its mortgage criteria search tool found the search combination for first-time buyer, first-time landlord and non-owner occupier increased by 18 per cent since the start of September.

The mortgage club also found that ‘holiday lets’ was the second most searched for term among advisers this month.

According to Legal & General, its findings showed many first-time property investors were looking to purchase buy-to-let properties in response to an increase in demand from consumers to holiday in the UK, rather than abroad, amid international travel restrictions.

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Kevin Roberts, director at Legal & General Mortgage Club, said: “Despite the impact of coronavirus, we are seeing rising demand across the housing market with buy to let in particular enjoying a mini-boom.

“Our latest findings from SmartrCriteria suggest a growing number of first-time buyers are searching for mortgages for buy-to-let ventures, including those engaging with the growing trend towards staycations this year.”

Mr Roberts added: “Amidst this continued high demand we are seeing in the mortgage market, thousands of borrowers are clearly turning to independent advisers to help them with their plans and these experts are playing a vital role for consumers”.

Akhil Mair, managing director at Our Mortgage Broker, commented: “The data L&G have shared today is a very accurate reflection on the type of business and enquiries we have been receiving in the last few months.

“We are witnessing an unprecedented amount of first-time buyer, first time landlord enquiries, including expat and foreign nationals wishing to invest in the UK property market.”

Mr Mair added the “huge interest” his firm had encountered was due to incentives such as the stamp duty holiday.

By Chloe Cheung

Source: FT Adviser

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Lockdown results in positive financial impact for a third of first-time buyers

A third of first-time buyers across the country have revealed that the lockdown has resulted in a positive impact on their finances, with this group of property hunters making up a third of those hoping to purchase a property in the next 12 months according to analysis from money.co.uk.

In regards to location, the data shows that over a quarter (28%) of first-time buyers are looking to purchase a home in London in the next year, with Barnet being the most sought after area for Help to Buy purchases. The top five London hotspots for first-time buyers also include Tower Hamlets, Lewisham and Greenwich.

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Additional insights reveal that the process of taking out a mortgage has become more difficult during the pandemic. Of those who have applied for a mortgage, 44% have claimed that there has been a reduced number of mortgage products available to them.

Salman Haqqi, personal finance expert at money.co.uk, said: “Since the UK went into lockdown in March, we have seen a huge impact on the property sector as a whole. However, following the recent reopening of the market, there has been an increase in the number of people purchasing the properties they had to put on hold due to COVID-19 restrictions.

“For those looking to buy, there are currently fewer mortgage products available than pre-COVID-19 but there are still some good deals to be found. With the base rate at a historical low at the moment, prospective buyers should really do their homework and research their options.

“If they have any doubts, they should speak to a mortgage advisor to ensure they are getting the right deal for their personal affordability, and circumstance.”

Source: Property Wire

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Leeds cuts rate for first-time buyers

Advisers have welcomed changes made by Leeds Building Society to its high loan-to-value product in a bid to help first-time buyers.

The society made a 0.4 per cent rate reduction on its 95 per cent loan-to-value mortgage.

The no-fee, 2.84 per cent two-year fixed rate mortgage comes with a free standard valuation, and a 1.25 per cent discount at the end of the fixed-rate period, for a further three years.

Matt Bartle, director of products at Leeds Building Society, said: “Our 95 per cent LTV mortgage has been designed with first-time buyers in mind, and this latest rate reduction will be very appealing to those looking to get onto the property ladder this year.

“With no completion fee, and free valuation as standard, we’re helping to keep costs down.

“We understand the importance of affordable housing, which is why we’re always looking for ways to help buyers with smaller deposits, alongside Help to Buy and Shared Ownership mortgages, which complement our range of deals at higher LTVs.”

Advisers called the building society’s mortgage rate changes “one to watch” and welcomed the move, although expressed caution in the uncertain economic environment.

Adam Hosker, founder of Bespoke Finance, said: “Leeds Building Society is always one to watch. A high street lender that is innovating on a solid product foundation. With further movements expected, the team is always eager to read Leeds’ updates.”

Martin Stewart, founder of London Money, commented: “It is a good rate and will get Leeds very close to the top of the best buy tables. Lenders are always tweaking their rates and sometimes they are up and other times down.

“We are still in a very benign interest rate environment so changes either way are often minuscule. It’s one thing having cheap money though and another thing altogether being able to borrow it.

“I have always been wary of high LTV products and even more so in the current environment where the Boris bounce could easily become a dead cat one overnight.”

Sebastian Reimann, mortgage, protection and equity release adviser for Libra Financial, agreed. He said: “This is great news although I see little demand for high LTV products. The sweet spot is probably at around 85 per cent LTV now, although I appreciate that’s not an option for everyone.”

By Simoney Kyriakou

Source: FT Adviser