First-time buyers 'will benefit from lower house prices'

House prices are likely to come down by around a fifth over the next two years, according to the predictions of one expert.

Firstrung operations director Paul Holmes suggested the withdrawal of mortgage products from the market by lenders under tightening conditions will ultimately benefit first-time buyers.

He said the price of property will come down "quite dramatically" because "cheap and readily available credit has gone".

This would be a huge benefit to first-time buyers, according to Mr Holmes.

He added that housebuilders who have over-developed view first-time buyers as the "flavour of the day".

"[Developers] now have no customers and so the only people they can possibly look for are first-time buyers," Mr Holmes explained.
His advice to first-time buyers is to buy a property if they believe it is a bargain.

However, since they have waited a long time to be able to afford a property purchase, Mr Holmes suggested there is little harm in taking a wait-and-see approach in the current conditions.

According to Moneyfacts.co.uk statistics, some 2,026 mortgage deals were withdrawn from the market in the month up to March 20th.


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