First-time buyers trying to get onto the property ladder face different challenges depending on the region they’re buying in, new research shows.
Despite property prices being highest in the South of England, first-time buyers have a particularly challenging time trying to buy in the North East, according to research carried out by Coventry Building Society. It found that nearly half (41%) of first-time buyers trying to purchase a property in this region found it difficult to secure a mortgage, with nearly two-thirds needing to save for over three years to build a deposit.
Only 18% of buyers in the South West of England said they faced similar problems, despite the fact that property prices there are nearly 20% higher than the national average.
How can regional differences be explained?
The challenges facing buyers in the North East can partly be explained by a lack of awareness of available support schemes in the region to help buyers fund a deposit, the building society said. Take up of these schemes in the North East is less than half (15%) than it is in the South West (36%) suggesting more could be done in the North to encourage buyers to make use of them
The disparity between the two regions and the challenges facing first-time buyers in each may also be due to differences in average household spending. For example, latest data from the Office for National Statistics shows that card spending between July and September 2022 and the same period in 2023 increased at a higher level in the North East than in London and the South East.
A spokesman for Coventry said: “In light of the help we know is needed for first time buyers in these areas, brokers who are aware of the differences in spending patterns across the regions will find themselves in the best place to advise first time buyers on repayment plans that suit different spending trends and lifestyles.”
Separate research by the building society shows the value of advice in the homebuying process, with nearly all first-time buyers who used a mortgage broker (96%) in 2023/24 claiming they proved to be invaluable, up from 90% in 2022.
