New research from Zoopla has revealed Britain's most popular locations for first-time buyers and how much it costs to buy your first home in each area.
According to the findings, the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham is crowned Britain's most popular location for those looking to buy their first home.
The most popular first-time areas all share one common characteristic - they’re within reach of the UK’s biggest cities but still relatively affordable. For example, instead of purchasing in the centre of Manchester, savvy first-time buyers are looking at Oldham, whilst those who want to live and work in Birmingham are looking at Wolverhampton.
Zoopla has analysed demand from first-time buyers over the past three months and ranked locations with the highest percentage of demand submitted from those identifying as first-time buyers. Zoopla has also provided the average property value first-time buyers look for in each location, the most popular property type searched for by first-time buyers, as well as Zoopla calculations for the typical deposit and average income needed to service an 85% loan-to-value mortgage.
The Borough of Barking and Dagenham topped the charts, where the most in-demand property for first-time buyers is a three-bed terraced house valued at £300,000, those looking to buy their first home would need a deposit of £45,000 and an income of £56,667 to buy. In second place is the Borough of Tower Hamlets, where first-time buyers need to earn £80,278 and have a deposit of £63,750 for a home valued at £425,000. In third place, and also in London, is the Borough of Newham where first-time buyers are after two-bed flats priced at £340,000, which would set them back £51,000 for a 15% deposit.
Outside of London, Leicester is the most popular location for first-time buyers in the East Midlands, where the average home value enquired about is £175,000, and a £26,250 deposit is required. Bristol (£225,000 value with a £26,250 deposit) tops the list in the South West. North of the border in Scotland, Midlothian (£145,000 with a £26,250 deposit) is the most popular destination for those buying their first home.
Richard Donnell, Research Director at Zoopla, comments: “First-time buyers are the largest buyer group in the housing market, accounting for close to 2 in every 5 sales. Low mortgage rates and increased availability of higher loan to value mortgages have supported the growth in first-time buyer numbers over the last 5 years. Much of the growth in first-time buyer numbers have been recorded in regional housing markets where the cost of buying remains attractive.
“Our analysis shows that first time buyers are seeking out the most affordable areas which deliver the best value for money in terms of accessibility and property type and size. In the highest-priced markets, first-time buyers are seeking 2-bed homes but across large parts of the country first-time buyers are seeking out 3-bed homes.”
