First time buyer age soaring

A recent study has shown how the average age of the first time buyer has soared over recent decades, with the younger people of today expecting to be around twelve years older than their parents were when they manage to purchase a property for the first time. The study was carried out by the Post Office and showed that the difficult economic and financial climate had really taken its toll on potential first time buyers.

Over the past few years, first time buyers have been hit hard by the problems in the mortgage and property markets. Many have been unable to afford to raise the huge deposits that lenders have been demanding and many others have been unable to get a mortgage at all due to increased restrictions and stringency from lenders, who have been exercising increased caution.

The study involved polling parents and younger people and showed that the average age of parents when they bought their first property was around twenty three whereas their kids expected to be around thirty five years of age on average by the time they managed to afford a property themselves. This would see the average age of the first time buyer soar by twelve years, with parents in the 1960s purchasing in their mid twenties and younger people today having to wait until their mid thirties. The average twenty-something of today earns around £21,000 in terms of salary, but with average property prices at £164,000 most would be unable to consider buying a property on their own.

One industry official stated: “Many would-be first-time buyers may have been put off trying to get onto the housing ladder by the size of deposits now needed. Some may be deterred by their perception of high mortgage repayments.”

Tags: GBP, 1960s, Parent, first time buyer, recent study, post, would-be first-time buyers, average property prices