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TODAY'S OTHER NEWS

Price of a first-time buyer home hits record high

Brexit concerns have not dented first-time buyers’ appetite to own their own home, according to estate agents Your Move and Reeds Rains.

With many would-be buyers still wanting to get a foot on the housing ladder, the average asking price of a typical first-time buyer home in England and Wales hit an all-time high in May, new figures show.

The latest data from the Your Move House Price Index reveals that May saw first-time buyers pay an average of £173,282 to get a foot onto the housing ladder, up 2.7% from £168,656 in April and 15.8% more than the average of £149,645 seen in May 2015. The increase means that first-time buyer property prices have now surged by more than £23,000 in the last 12 months.

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But home prices did dip in May by 0.4% month-on-month, in anticipation of the EU referendum on 23 June.

Completed first-time buyer sales totalled 24,900 in May, just 0.8% lower than the 25,100 seen in April, even as first-time buyers were held back by a lack of homes on the market ahead of the EU referendum. The overarching trend remains strong, with first-time buyer numbers 13.2% higher than the 22,000 seen in February and 5.1% higher than a year ago.

Despite uncertainty in the UK economy, Adrian Gill, director of Your Move and Reeds Rains, reports that many first-time buyers still want to capitalise on the record low mortgage rates available at the moment.

He commented: “The Brexit result won’t change the fact that huge numbers of aspiring first-timers want to buy a first home, and lots won’t want to wait out the two years until the renegotiations over the EU have been completed.”

“In the short-term, the wider market wobbles may benefit first-timers, giving them the leverage to negotiate harder and get a good deal on purchase price. Canny first-timers will use any Brexit-lull as a chance to snap up a good deal and get on the housing ladder.”

Region

Average Purchase Price

Average deposit

Average mortgage

Number of FTBs*

London

£338,074

£84,138

£253,936

11,700

South East

£229,828

£42,002

£187,826

15,300

South West

£165,068

£28,729

£136,339

6,100

East of England

£161,088

£31,585

£129,503

2,600

UK

£154,886

£27,009

£127,878

77,700

East Midlands

£139,250

£21,138

£118,112

5,800

West Midlands

£137,731

£20,695

£117,036

6,600

North West

£123,830

£18,533

£105,297

8,200

Yorkshire & Humber

£120,010

£19,510

£100,500

6,200

Wales

£114,544

£16,574

£97,970

3,200

Scotland

£113,448

£15,859

£97,589

6,800

Northern Ireland

£106,504

£20,223

£86,280

1,900

North East

£106,022

£16,990

£89,033

3,300

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