House Prices for first time buyers have increased by two thirds in a decade

The latest data from Halifax shows that over the last 10 years property prices have increased by 69%. In 2010 the average price for property in the UK was £142,473, but in 2020 this has leaped to an average of £241,025.

In London property prices have increased by a whopping 98%! Meaning first time buyers are now paying £463,536 to purchase their first home. This is nearly double the cost of London properties in 2010.

House prices in the South East have also increased by 73% to £303,838. The the East Midlands have also seen a large increase. You will now pay an average of £187,525 per property here. A price increase of 78% over the 10-year span recorded.

This translates to an average 60% increase in price for all buyer types.

Since 2019 the costs for a first-time buyer have increased by 7%.

Individuals wishing to purchase a property in Wales have seen the largest increase since 2019 at 9%. This figure is closely followed by the North East, Yorkshire and the Humber which saw prices increase by 8% respectively.

London and the South East have seen the smallest increase since last year, increasing at 3% on average annually.

In addition to rising prices, Halifax notes that the number of first-time buyers looking to buy has decreased. The number of first-time buyers has fallen by nearly a third with a 29% decrease.

In the beginning of 2020, there was 116,843 first time buyers compared to 164,800 in the same period of 2019.

Despite this decrease, first time buyers still make up over 52% of the property market. This figure has been steadily increasing since the help to buy scheme as introduced in 2013.

Halifax Mortgage Director Tom Martin argues that although the number of new buyers has dipped during lockdown they will increase as we approach the Autumn season. This is because individuals seek to make the most of the stamp duty holiday.

He argues that despite these higher property prices, first time buyers are putting down bigger deposits. These deposits are 25% higher than they were in 2010 with the average first time buyer providing a £47,059 deposit.

The most expensive place to buy is London with the average property costing 12.3 times the average salary per person. Middlesbrough is becoming the most affordable area to buy property in with prices falling from 4.4 times the average income to 3.9 times the average income.