Sep 16

4 in 5 first time buyers are compromising on their first home

Research reveals bitter truth

With UK house prices going through the roof, buyers are forced to spend a bomb to purchase their first home.

But sadly, 77 per cent of first time buyers are forced to compromise on their first home, despite the average cost of a home coming in £12,000 higher than buyers plan to spend.

A survey of over 2,000 prospective buyers and first-time homeowners, undertaken by homebuilder Barratt Homes, shows that on average first time buyers are spending over £222,000 on their first home, 6 per cent more than the £210,000 prospective homeowners are looking to spend. In fact, only 39 per cent of buyers spend what they thought they would.

The survey identified the most important factors for first time buyers as location, size and the size of the garden, but they are also the first areas in which prospective buyers are most willing to compromise. 28 per cent of prospective buyers would sacrifice location, whereas one in six would compromise on the number of bedrooms they want for the chance to find the near-perfect first home.

In reality, those who had purchased their first home in the past five years acted differently, sacrificing the size of the garden (36 per cent) or the availability of off road parking (23 per cent). Only 23 per cent said they didn’t have to compromise. 17 per cent felt they had ultimately compromised on the wrong factor.

First time buyers are also spending longer in their first homes than they initially might have planned. Only half of those who planned to stay for less than a year did so, while 71 per cent of people stayed for four or more years. The research also suggests that many people don’t feel the need to make any changes to their new property. Almost one in four did nothing to their first home after they moved in.

A spokesperson for Barratt Homes, said: “Our research shows that buying a first home can be a challenging process where some buyers can struggle to know what to expect or to compromise on. However, it’s encouraging that almost a quarter of buyers are able to find the perfect first home without having to make any compromises at all.”

The Barratt Homes spokesperson said: “First time buyers are seeing their first home not as a launchpad onto bigger and better things, but as a live-ready home in which to spend a significant amount of time. It allows them to better identify the most important factors to them when choosing a home, which can only result in a happier homeowner.”