There were 26,300 first-time buyer transactions in April 2014, up 8% from 24,400 in March 2014.
Compared to last year, the number of first-time buyers was 47% higher in April 2014, with the revival in new buyers aided by the Help to Buy Scheme, which has facilitated more high loan-to-value lending. First-time buyer deposits fell 7.5% year-on-year to £24,618 in April. It was equivalent to a drop of over £2,000 from £26,623 in April 2013.
1 in 10 first time buyers (11%) say the financial assistance of Government schemes such as Help to Buy enabled them to get their foot on the property ladder.
David Brown, commercial director of LSL Property Services, said:
"The tightening of mortgage criteria hasn’t dampened the appetite for first-time-buyer property. Many more new buyers are making the jump onto the property ladder, while deposit requirements – and mortgage rates – remain relatively low. Many buyers are locking into fix-rate deals that promise low repayments for the next few years, offers that may not be around much longer.
“With real wage growth around the corner, and expectation that prices will continue to rise, getting on the property ladder is not only becoming more realistic, but more of a priority. The prospect of the end of Help to Buy may add further fuel to the momentum in the market.”
First-time buyer purchase prices rose 10% over the year to April 2014, reaching an average of £149,655. The average first-time buyer mortgage size has outpaced that growth (+15% year-on-year), enabled by greater high loan-to-value lending. In April, first-time buyers took out a mortgage worth £125,037 on average.
In April, the average first-time buyer was 30 years old and earning an annual salary of £36,276. Higher house prices in the capital were reflected in the age of buyers in London, with the average first-time buyer was earning an annual salary of £41,667.
First-time buyers in the capital paid an average of £293,671 per property in the three months to April, far and away more than all other regions of the UK, including the South East (£195,185). Northern Ireland was the cheapest region for first-timers, with an average purchase price of £85,772. Yorkshire & Humber and the North East were home to the highest number of high LTV borrowers in the three months to April, with average deposits of £14,546 and £14,896 respectively.
David Brown, commercial director of LSL Property Services, said:
“The London market tells a very different story to the rest of the country. There are many affordable properties still on the market outside of London and the South East. Further afield from the capital, price rises have been much more subdued. In Yorkshire & Humber, it’s still possible to buy a two-bedroom terrace in Sheffield for under £33,000.”
