Pandemic not stopping First-time Homeowners

CORONAVIRUS notwithstanding, first-time buyers are pushing forward and even more determined to purchase their homes. Study says that more people are ready to get a foot on the housing ladder.

Research commissioned by the Yorkshire Building Society has revealed the change of priorities for respondents. Compare to original sentiments at the start of the pandemic in March, now, 61% of respondents agree that buying a home is more important. That is three in five people.

These respondents are aggressively hoping to purchase their homes sooner due to the pandemic and to the uncertainty of the length of safety measures. Half of the respondents have claimed that they have saved more for house deposit as a result of the COVID-19 restrictions.

However, buying a new home has not become easier. A few months ago, many lenders pulled the plug on mortgages with low deposits. A first-time buyer has many hurdles to face. According to the research, one aspiring homeowner would need to save a monthly average of £336 for the next seven years to raise the amount for the deposit of a typical entry-level home.

According to the Yorkshire Building Society, that is seven years and five months to save a 15% deposit, for a house valued at £198,512.

To be able to pay for higher deposits, many first-time buyers look to their relatives for financial assistance. This has become such an acceptable practise that "The Bank of Mum and Dad" has ranked as the UK's tenth biggest mortgage lender based on the estimated £6.3bn of financial assistance that parents provided to fund their children's property purchases in the past years, as reported by Financial Times.

The number of those wishing to buy in the capital has crossed to 59%.

Ben Merritt, mortgages acquisition manager 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."