Housing First Time Buyers & Buy to Let

Housing First Time Buyers & Buy to Let

May 14th, 2010

The average house price in the UK in February 2010 for first time buyers now stands at £149,490 which is an annual increase of 9.3%. Figures from GfK Financial reveal that 347,000 people took out a mortgage for the very first time in the last year, 100,000 fewer than the previous low in February 1993. This compares with a high of more than 700,000 in 2004/5 and an average of 561,000. Paragon Mortgages’ Q1 2010 Trends Report reveals that tenant demand remains strong, with 24% of landlords stating that demand grew during the quarter, compared to 8% who said it was declining. The proportion of landlords stating that tenant demand was declining was lower than the previous quarter, when 13% of landlords said tenant demand was falling. Looking forward, landlords expect tenant demand to strengthen considerably, with nearly four out of 10 landlords (36%) forecasting demand for their property to be higher in 12 months’ time A YouGov survey, commissioned by the National Housing Federation, revealed that 86% of 18-30 year-olds, who do not own their own home, could not currently afford to buy a home if they wanted to, despite recent falls in house prices. A massive 83% of 18-30 year-olds, also thought buying a home was now more a dream than a reality for young adults. The typical first-time buyer deposit in February was 25% (£39,683). The average first-time buyer borrowed 3.11 times their income and the average first-time buyer loan was £119,047. The number of landlords with arrears of more than 1.5% of the balance stayed the same in the fourth quarter of 2009 at 20,700, but is 37% down from the 32,900 seen in the same period the year before. The number of buy-to-let properties taken into possession in the fourth quarter fell by 25% from quarter three but rose 9% from quarter four 2008. statistics provided by credit action. For all your property mortgage requirements please contact Mark or Clare at GMP Independent Financial Advisers LLP  

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