First Time Buyers stand strong through Brexit
It is safe to say that Brexit has triggered uncertainty in various areas of the UK property market. It is noticeable, however, to see that the First Time Buyers remain strong, especially in South East Essex where The Mortgage Library is located.
Firstly, there are many government schemes giving the First Time Buyers that boost they need to get their feet on the property ladder. You can open Help to Buy and Lifetimes ISAs, where the government will reward your savings with a bonus to put towards your house deposit. Other schemes they can benefit from include Right to Buy, Help to Buy and Shared Ownership.
In November 2017, The Chancellor announced big taxation changes to Stamp Duty, working very much in the First Time Buyer’s favour. It meant that providing their house purchase was under the value of £300,000 they benefit from full Stamp Duty relief, paying nothing at all! This can help save thousands in upfront costs.
These tax changes for buy to let investors have caused a decrease in the buy to let market and has acted almost like a deterrent. The tax adjustments have made it much more expensive to obtain, manage and finance their property portfolios, and owing to this, investing in property is becoming less appealing to landlords and potential landlords. First time buyers now have a better chance at obtaining a property that may have been, at one point, bid on by a competitive landlord. This leaves more of the market open to the First Time Buyers wanting to start their family homes journey.
In addition to this, the brave first-time buyers also benefit from the incredibly low interest rates on their mortgage products, that are still in place. This means that they’ll often find monthly mortgage repayments are lower than rent. In addition to benefiting from the lower outgoings, first time buyers also have the peace of mind that they are chipping away at their own mortgage balance, as opposed to someone else’s (which is essentially what happens when you rent a property). 5 year fix products remain competitive, giving first time buyers the protection to secure their rate from potential increases or uncertainty following Brexit, if any.
When Brexit is eventually finalised, perhaps there will even be an influx of first-time buyers which, of course, means more demand that will cause a further increase in house prices.
If you buy now you could end up paying less than if you had waited, and gained a head start on those mortgage repayments. At this point, as that brave first-time buyer, you are also secured to see your property increase in value, whilst others could potentially struggle to get something in budget.
Does it really make sense to wait? ….
By Maria Bartholomew from The Mortgage Library