Prices up again …
House prices increased by 0.6 per cent in May, with average house prices reaching £151,800 and London’s average rising above £250,000 for the first time, according to the latest Hometrack survey.
The research reveals a 0.6 per cent increase in average national house prices, bringing the total increase this year to 3.2 per cent. The number of transactions also continued to increase, with house sales up 2.7 per cent, buyers up two per cent and discounts on asking prices diminishing.
Average sales price achieved as a percentage of asking price is 96.4 per cent. While this is the same as last month, it is the highest percentage recorded since November 2002. This again points to further upward pressure on house prices for the rest of the year. The average length of time taken to sell a property has fallen to 4.0 weeks (4.2 in April’s survey). There is currently an average of 10.1 viewings before a sale is achieved.
… and the first rung is higher than ever
It takes first-time buyers a year longer to save for a house deposit than a decade ago, according to National Savings and Investments (NS&I). The research revealed that since 1994 the time it takes to save for a five per cent deposit on a first home has increased from two years nine months to three years nine months. In the South East, first time buyers face having to save for 48 months.
With increases across the UK of between three and 15 months for the average first-time buyer to save for a deposit, it is harder than ever for those who want to get a foothold on the property ladder. The extra time taken is down to the fact that income increases (68 per cent) have not matched increases in house prices (142 per cent) over the past ten years.
Gill Cattanach, marketing director at National Savings and Investments, said: ‘The growing gap between increases in house prices and incomes means that those thinking about buying homes for the first time need to start saving earlier.’