First Time Buyers Numbers
First-time buyer numbers were up 16% to 957,000 in 2020-21 compared to 2019-20 according to the latest English Housing Survey and were 32 years old on average. The report found that those using their savings to purchase their first home had increased from 76% to 91% since 2017-18, whereas buyers receiving a gift from family or friends decreased from 36% to 23% over the same period.
Repayment Mortgages
Of those who had a mortgage nearly all has a repayment mortgage and around 62% has a repayment period of 30 years, higher than the 47% of first-time buyers in 2019-20. Nearly one in four paid a deposit of less than 20% (average £44,294) of the purchase price of their property.
Hargreaves Lansdown senior personal finance analyst Sarah Coles commented on the findings: “Parents need to be aware of the costs if they are dipping into the equity in their home, it may well mean paying their own mortgage for longer. If they’re spending their savings, they need to be sure they still have enough for emergencies, and if they’re spending a lump sum from their pension, they need to be aware of the impact on their retirement income.”
