Number of first-time buyers plummets to lowest on record

worldtraveller

The number of first-time buyers has fallen to its lowest since records began in 1974.

Around 187,000 people became first-time buyers in 2011, which was 7pc fewer than the preceding year and less than half the recent peak of 402,800 seen in 2006.

The figure from Halifax, the lowest recorded since it started tracking the data for the UK, will stoke concerns that a generation of Britons is locked out of the property market.

Telegraph

brit1234

And all because house prices are too high. We need to finally get GRant schnapps to say openly house prices need to fall. I have already got him to admit shared equity/ownership schemes are a waste of tax layers money on independent/guardian live q&a blog. Paxman the other day almost got him to say prices were too high.

There is good in him, we need him to turn back from the dark side and support the rebellion.

CLAPTON

brit1234 wrote: »

And all because house prices are too high. We need to finally get GRant schnapps to say openly house prices need to fall. I have already got him to admit shared equity/ownership schemes are a waste of tax layers money on independent/guardian live q&a blog. Paxman the other day almost got him to say prices were too high.

There is good in him, we need him to turn back from the dark side and support the rebellion.

so if he says house prices are too high; will they then fall by some magic?

brit1234

CLAPTON wrote: »

so if he says house prices are too high; will they then fall by some magic?

In a free Market yes. However instead we have a meddled Market, with interest rates cut to ultra lows and dodgy affordable housing schemes. So instead of an instant correction we are having a longer drawn out one instead. Prices are still falling, you simply can't hold the tide back for ever.

CLAPTON

brit1234 wrote: »

In a free Market yes. However instead we have a meddled Market, with interest rates cut to ultra lows and dodgy affordable housing schemes. So instead of an instant correction we are having a longer drawn out one instead. Prices are still falling, you simply can't hold the tide back for ever.

and I thought that in a free market the price was set by supply and demand and not by government ministers

I would agree that government changing its actually policies and practices may indeed impack on the market but not by a silly minster 'admitting' prices are too high.

scrapping 'affordable' housing building requirements would of course be a help

moneyinmypocket

If someone bought a house between 2005-2007 and then put it up for sale but could only get 75% of what they paid then they wont sell purley because they wont want to take a hit on it etc - they will only sell/get repo if they couldnt AFFORD to live there any longer. Lots of houses are on market, little is selling but people wont take a hit because its cheaper to stay put.

WHat should have been happening last 5 years is that wages should have increased 5% year on year and house prices stayed static (but the gap narrows in real terms)

However this hasnt happened due to static wages and v small decreses in house prices. When we get through the bad times (next 5 years) and then prices start to increase again.

System

FTBer numbers down 55%

Total transactions down about 50%.

I guess santa didn't bring any intelligence to the person who wrote that gem of an article.

drc

2012 there will be virtually no first time buyers. With the perfect storm of needing a huge deposit and the scarcity of mortgages and bank of mum and dad all but spent, the housing market, imo, is going to revolve around equity rich homeowners buying and selling to each other. I am not sure how the loss of the FTB to the market will affect the rest of the ladder. Anyone want to guess...?

wymondham

brit1234 wrote: »

In a free Market yes. However instead we have a meddled Market, with interest rates cut to ultra lows and dodgy affordable housing schemes. So instead of an instant correction we are having a longer drawn out one instead. Prices are still falling, you simply can't hold the tide back for ever.

Exactly the problem......

wymondham

It's great news that FTB's are the lowest. The lower the better at the moment as this will start prices toppling which will ultimately benefit everyone.

drc

What I don't understand is why they don't raise interest rates slightly so that there is not one almighty crash but the market deflates slowly and those so over leveraged that they cannot get by on a 1% interest rate would have to sell up? Surely there can't be that many that are that over leveraged and it would mean those FTB's and savers would have a bit more money in savings interest.

I can't see how the economy can continue to function with such high property prices for rent and to buy as it means salaries have to be so much higher just so that people can pay for a roof over the heads. It also means that for a lot of people there is no incentive to look for work as they would be worse off. Surely this makes the UK uncompetitive? If the government of the day (nuLabour) could inflate the bubble over 10 years, then surely the government of the day (Tories) can deflate it?