Nearly two-fifths of aspiring FTBs will be 40 or older when they buy
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Nearly two-fifths, 38% of aspiring first-time buyers anticipate being 40 or older when they buy their new home, according to new research from property website Globrix.com.
A further one in 12 aspiring first-time buyers, 8%, surveyed by Globrix.com don’t expect ever to buy their own home.
In contrast, 74% of existing homeowners say they bought their first property before they were 30. Only 13% of aspiring first-time buyers say they would be able to get their foot on the property ladder before reaching that age.
Aspiring first-time buyers are also relying heavily on the Bank of Mum and Dad to help them get their first place, with over a quarter, 26% expecting their parents to provide 20% or more of the deposit they need to buy their first home.
Globrix.com’s research also suggests that university debt may be acting as a further barrier to young people getting onto the property ladder.
Of those surveyed by Globrix.com who had graduated since 2006, one in seven, 14% agree that their university debt will delay them getting on the property ladder and one in five, 21% agree that they would have been able to get on the property ladder earlier if they didn’t go to university.
Meanwhile nearly one in four, 24% of those who haven’t been to university said that, for them, getting on the property ladder is more important than getting a degree and one in five, 21% say they are glad they didn’t go to university as the debt means it wouldn’t have been worth it.
Jennifer Warner from Globrix.com says: “Many young people who want to get on the property ladder have accepted that they will be much older by the time they finally do. A significant portion have given up the dream altogether.
“What we’re seeing is a major generational shift towards the realisation that buying your own home will be an elite rather than a mainstream lifestyle choice in the coming decades, and to a large extent only those with wealthy parents who can contribute towards a deposit will be able to buy a place of their own.
“Many young people already accept renting as a long-term alternative to buying, and with average university debt set to increase significantly over the next few years we can only see this trend strengthening.”
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