"While small changes can add up, we urge first time buyers making New Year Resolutions on the first of January this year to look at the bigger picture"
Its new tool, the First Time Buyer Deposit Savings Generator, enables first-time buyers to enter the deposit they need, to reveal the number of ‘luxuries’ such as avocados, lattes, beers, glasses of wine and monthly gym memberships they would need to give up in order to save that amount.
UK first time buyers, paying on average £219,660 for their home, would need to pledge to give up over 6,000 beers, nearly 9,000 lattes, more than 5,700 glasses of wine or 45 years’ worth of gym membership in order to raise a 10% deposit, which highlights how unfair some of the criticism aimed at millennial first time buyers really is.
While lots of small lifestyle changes can add up, giving up avocado on toast isn’t going to make much difference to the savings mountain most first-time buyers have to climb.
In London, the numbers become even more ludicrous, with a first-time buyer required to give up almost 38,000 avocados, which is equivalent to one per day for 104 years, in order to save a typical deposit in the capital of £40,945.
Rob Houghton, CEO of Reallymoving, said: “Saving a deposit is without doubt the greatest challenge when buying a first home and this research highlights how unhelpful it is to suggest that millennials only need to be willing to sacrifice a few luxuries such as takeaway coffees and gym memberships, to get on the housing ladder.
“While small changes can add up, we urge first time buyers making New Year Resolutions on the first of January this year to look at the bigger picture, make decisions such as moving back in with parents or downsizing, opening an Help to Buy ISA and paying in a fixed amount each month, or setting up a money saving app on their devices, to help monitor spending and saving.
“Our First Time Buyer Deposit Savings Generator is a fun tool designed to help first-time buyers challenge any suggestion that saving for a deposit is easy, alongside a range of free resources to help them actually achieve their goal.”
