FTB transformation 'not just economic'

Over three quarters of consumers believe that affordability for first-time buyers is at its worst ever level, but a study from GE Money Home Lending suggests that differing attitudes to home ownership also have a part to play in the conundrum.

The average age of a first-time buyer has risen from 27 in 1977 to 34 in 2007, the report found, but the number of 25-year-olds who see owning a home as an important priority has fallen by 49 per cent over the same period.

A focus on independence and self-fulfilment also means that the number of first time buyers purchasing on their own has almost doubled in the past thirty years, the study added.

"This refusal to conform to traditional family-oriented motivations and the desire to gain independence and experience, undoubtedly delays the purchase of a first home and contributes to the ongoing affordability issues faced by these consumers," commented GE Money Home Lending head of mortgage marketing Gerry Bell.

The report reasserts the findings of separate research from Scottish Widows Bank, published last month, which found that 58 per cent of first-time buyers do not believe they earn enough to get onto the property ladder.


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