"It’s encouraging to see the first-time buyer term being used beyond purely residential transactions"
A growing number of first-time buyers are taking advantage of this tax break but they – and other potential buyers – continue to face their fair share of challenges.
These factors were highlighted in a recent study by the Building Societies Association (BSA). This reported a marked uplift in the number of people who believe that now is a good time to buy a property – 37% in September compared to 25% in June. However, 68% cited fears around job security as a barrier to homeownership, topping the list for the second consecutive quarter. In comparison, this time last year job security was cited as a barrier by 37% and in March – before lockdown – by just 35%.
While many headlines have focused on the rise of first-time buyers for homeownership purposes, additional data from Legal & General Mortgage Club suggested that there is also heightened demand from first-time buyers looking to enter the buy-to-let sector. Searches through its SmartrCriteria tool showed that the criteria search combination for first-time buyer, first-time landlord and non-owner occupier saw an 18% increase since the beginning of September.
Delving further into current buy-to-let activity, the research also outlined that holiday lets was the second most searched term among advisers in September, moving from the top spot in August, as international travel restrictions continue to fuel an increase in demand for ‘staycations’. The data also revealed a jump in the numbers of advisers searching for products on behalf of expat clients. Search criteria for ‘expat not in UK’ was suggested to have increased by 50% since the beginning of September, with the majority of searches looking for buy-to-let mortgages.
When summing up this data, the phrase buy-to-let ‘mini-boom’ was used and this has certainly been reflected in rising demand across the buy-to-let sector in recent weeks. It’s encouraging to see the first-time buyer term being used beyond purely residential transactions and that increased confidence in the UK property market is leading to a wider range of investors both domestic and overseas.
We are bracing ourselves for a busy Q4. With additional complexity emerging throughout the residential and buy-to-let markets, due to lingering economic uncertainty and an ever-changing lending landscape, there will be an even greater emphasis on the value attached to a good, professional advice process. And this will be evident for first-time buyers through to seasoned investors over the closing months of 2020 and beyond.
