One in five expect to wait until their 40s before owning a home
And more than 80% say that the cost-of-living has impacted their plans, with 49% having delayed them due to affordability concerns.
Around half (48%) of first-time buyers say their prospects of owning a home are further away than ever due to the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, research by Nationwide Building Society reveals today.
As a result, one in five (20%) don’t think they will be able to buy until at least their forties – despite the average first-time buyer age being 33.
COST-OF-LIVING
Worryingly more than eight in 10 (84%) say that the cost-of-living has impacted their plans, with 49% having delayed them due to affordability concerns. Six in 10 (60%) are postponing their homeownership plans by up to three years.
The building society wants government to provide greater support to boost homeownership through an independent review into the first-time buyer market, stamp duty reform and enabling more lending at high loan-to-income levels.
Nationwide is also joining forces with the Building Societies Association and four of the UK’s largest building societies to produce a Housing White Paper this spring, outlining the solutions needed to tackle the homeownership crisis.
BIGGEST BARRIER
When asked about what the biggest barrier was to getting that first home, nearly a third (31%) said it was saving for a deposit.
However, that isn’t the only barrier, with 44% pointing to an issue with affordability with one in five (20%) saying it was finding somewhere in their price range and 14% saying it was being able to afford the monthly repayments. One in ten (10%) said it was the ability to borrow enough for the mortgage.
Rachael Sinclair, Nationwide’s Director of Mortgages and Financial Wellbeing, says: “Getting that first home is as challenging as it ever has been. We need to solve the first-time buyer conundrum, which is why Nationwide has continually called for government to set up an independent review of the first-time buyer market.
“It’s why we’ll also be jointly launching a Housing White Paper with the Building Societies Association next week, which will outline the essential policy changes that are needed to tackle the homeownership crisis and support people into their first home.”
