With house prices and deposits at record highs, nearly half of all prospective and recent homebuyers are having to make significant financial and personal sacrifices in order to purchase a property.
According to Tesco Bank’s UK Home Buyers’ Survey, 45% of those questioned said they cut back on social spending, 35% reduced the number of holidays they went on and almost three in 10 (28%) took steps to reduce their shopping bills. Almost one in 10 delayed having children to be able to afford their new property.
Demonstrating the financial stretch that buying a new home can have, the research also revealed that over a third (34%) of recent home buyers admitted that they had no savings left after they bought their new home, with almost half (43%) receiving help from family in order to fund their house purchase, borrowing an average of almost £30,000.
The research found that the majority (71%) of prospective UK home buyers are optimistic that they will find the right home this year, despite many having concerns around the challenges faced when purchasing a new home.
Those planning to purchase in the East Midlands and the North East of England/Yorkshire & the Humber were found to be the most optimistic that they will find a home within the year, while those planning to buy in East England and London have the lowest levels of optimism.
David Hollingworth, associate director of communications, London & Country Mortgages, said: “The research underlines some of the challenges in saving for the purchase of a new home and the help of family in building a deposit continues to play an important role, especially for first time buyers.
“Although many home buyers clearly cut back on their spending elsewhere in order to budget sensibly, they can at least put some certainty into their mortgage payments by taking advantage of the very attractive fixed rate options currently on offer. We continue to see the majority of customers elect to fix their rate, so they know exactly where they stand when it comes to the mortgage, which is likely to be the biggest single monthly outgoing.”
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