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Number of first time buyers in UK up by 10% in first half of 2016
The number of first time buyers in the UK increased by an estimated 10% in the first six months of 2016 compared with the same period in 2015, according to new research. Overall there were an estimated 154,200 first time buyers in the first half of 2016 compared with 140,500 in the same period last year, the data from the Halifax first time buyer review shows, more than double the market low in the first half of 2009. For the same six month period since 2012, the number entering the housing market has exceeded 100,000. However the number of first time buyer in the first half of 2016 was nearly a fifth lower, 36,700, than at the peak of the last boom in 2006. The report also shows that the number of first time buyers has increased more rapidly than the number of home movers over the past few years as a whole. As a result first time buyers have increased as a proportion of all mortgage financed house purchasers from 38% in 2011 to an estimated 47% in 2016. However, the percentage has been stable over the past three years as the numbers of first time buyers and home movers have risen at a similar pace since 2014. The average first time buyer deposit in May 2016 was £33,960, more than double that in 2007 when it was £16,400 and the report points out that there has been a 14% rise in the deposit over the past year largely reflecting the increase in house prices over that period. The 10 least affordable Local Authority Districts (LADs) for first time buyers are all in London. The least affordable is Brent where the average first time buyer property price of £457,014 is 12.5 times gross average annual earnings in the area. East Dunbartonshire in Scotland is the most affordable LAD in the UK with an average property price of £97,089, some 2.6 times local annual average gross earnings. Copeland in the North West is the next most affordable and five of the 10 most affordable LADs for first time buyers are in Scotland. ‘There was a further increase in the number of first time buyers in the first half of the year with the total exceeding 100,000 in the first six months of each year since 2012. This rise has been broadly in line with a general improvement in market activity and is likely to have been helped by government measures including the Help to Buy scheme,’ said Chris Gowland, mortgages director at the Halifax. ‘Although numbers remain below their previous peaks and many potential first time buyers are facing escalating house prices and deposit sizes, record low mortgage rates continue to make buying seem a more attractive option than renting,’ he added. The research also shows that the average price paid by first time buyers increased by 12% over the past year from £178,399 to £199,414. Regionally, the average price paid by first time… Continue reading
Affordability for home buyers in Australia eases in second quarter of 2016
Affordability for home buyers in Australia eased back in second quarter of 2016 as price growth returned to the residential real estate market. Overall affordability fell by 3.7% and was 2.1% less than the same quarter of 2015, according to the latest report from the Housing Industry Association, the voice of Australia’s residential building industry. The capital city housing affordability index fell by 4.3% during the quarter, while the regional market index experienced a 1.9% improvement. ‘Home price growth moderated in the early part of the year and the index showed an improvement in affordability during the March 2016 quarter. However, in the June quarter dwelling price growth returned and the index reverted to the level we saw at the end of 2015,’ said Geordan Murray, HIA economist. ‘While there was a decline in the headline index tracking the national picture, there was substantial variation around the country with substantial differences between states, and also differences between capital city markets and regional markets,’ he pointed out. He explained that the geographic variation in affordability is most evident in the comparison between Melbourne and Perth. Over the last year, the median dwelling price in Perth has fallen by 4.7% while Melbourne’s has grown by 11.5%. This has seen the affordability index for Perth increase by 6.2% over the last year, while the index for Melbourne has fallen by 6.2%. ‘These differences in affordability align with the relative economic performance of these two states. The Western Australian economy is navigating the tail end of the mining boom which has seen conditions in the local labour market deteriorate and consequently the rate of population growth has fallen quite sharply,’ Murray said. ‘In contrast, Victoria has experienced a healthy level of growth in the labour force and continues to record the strongest rate of population growth in the country,’ he added. A breakdown of the figures show that during the June 2016 quarter, improvements in affordability were observed in three capital cities with the largest improvement in Perth with growth of 3.2%, Darwin up 2.9% and Hobart up 2.2%. Affordability worsened in the remaining five capital cities with the largest decline recorded in Melbourne with a decline of 7.4%, followed by Canberra down 5.7%, Sydney down 1.6%, Adelaide down 1.3% and Brisbane down 1%. Continue reading
Latest English Housing Survey shows there are fewer first time buyers and they are older
The age of first time buyers in England has increased over the past 20 years, up from 30 to 33, according to the latest English Housing Survey published by the Government. In 2014/2015 the majority of first time buyers, some 61%, were aged 25 to 34 and this was similar to 1994/1995 but between 1994/1995 and 2014/2015 the proportion of first time buyers aged 16 to 24 fell from 23% to 10%, while the proportion aged 35 to 44 increased from 11% to 20%. The survey, from the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) also shows that more first time buyer households were couples than single people, compared with 20 years ago. The proportion of first time buyers that were single households halved from 29% in 1994/1995 to 14% in 2014/2015 meaning 80% of all first time buyers were couple households, a marked change since 1994/1995 when it was 63% and 2004/2005 when it was 62%. The report suggests that this may be due to an increasing need for two incomes to be able to buy. The analysis shows that among first time buyers that were couples, those with dependent children have increased the most from 20% to 31% and first time buyers had higher incomes and more help with funding their deposits than was required 20 years earlier. Some 72% of first time buyers were in the fourth and fifth quintile income bands in 2014/2015, up from 62% in 1994/1995 and there was an increase in the proportion of first time buyers that had help from friends and family from 21% to 27% while those that used inherited money for their deposit increased by 3% to 10%. Expectation to buy declined among private renters between 2013/2014 and 2014/2015, after a period of relative stability since 2006/2007. A breakdown of the figures show that in 2014/2015 some 57% of private renters were more likely to expect to buy property at some point in the future than social renters at 24%. Since 2006/2007 the proportion of private renters who expect to buy a home has remained relatively consistent. However, there was a decline from 61% in 2013/2014 to 57% in 2014/2015. There was no such decline in the proportion of social renters who expected to buy over the latest year. This was in large part due to the fall in the proportion of 25 to 44 year old private renters who expect to buy in the latest year. Expectation to buy for 25 to 34 year olds in the private rented sector was relatively stable from 2008/2009 but the 71% of 25 to 34 year olds expecting to buy their own property in 2014/2015 signified a decrease from 78% in 2013/2014. A similar pattern was evident among private renters aged 35 to 44 years, with a decline from 68% to 60% in the latest year. There were more older social and private renters expecting to buy than in 2010/2011. Among social… Continue reading
