NAEA: Now is time for first-time buyer advantage

22-Jul-2008

Hope is on the horizon for first-time buyers, according to the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA).

Chris Brown, the organisation's president, said the percentage of properties bought by first-timers increased in June following a difficult few months.

"For first-time buyers who have the adequate funds in place and can secure mortgages, now is a time they can operate as opportunists and take advantage of the market and the properties and prices currently available," he remarked.

Mr Brown acknowledged that consumer confidence remains low, a situation he attributed to economic factors including the continuing rising costs of living, the credit crunch and "the shackles around the mortgage market".

He suggested this confidence can be restored if the government, Bank of England and mortgage lenders work together to ease pressure.

"We are continuing to call on the government to cut stamp duty for first-time buyers and move the threshold to give people a break," he noted of the NAEA.

June showed a rise in the first-time buyer share of the market to around 11.8 per cent, an increase from the previous month's 10.6 per cent and last June's 9.8 per cent.

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Stamp-duty slash 'being considered' 'Never been a better time' for first-time buyers to purchase

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