New buyers 'want cash in hand'

13-Dec-2007

First time buyers believe that a cut in interest rates would be less valuable to them than a Christmas present in the shape of money towards a deposit on a new home, a new study has found.

Research from HotProperty.co.uk has shown that on the whole it's the deposit that troubles new buyers rather than the monthly rate of repayment on their first time buyer mortgage.

The Bank of England cut interest rates for the first time in more than two years last Thursday.

The study found that 62 per cent of respondents would prefer to receive cash upfront as a helping hand, with 25 per cent looking to further interest rate cuts to provide such assistance.

"One of the main barriers for first-time buyers is affordability - in terms of being able to have the cash for a deposit - with 62 percent opting for cash over changes that could have much more impact in the long term," confirmed HotProperty.co.uk managing director Shawn Luetchens.

"Although we in the industry often talk about interest rates and government regulations as major barriers, it is obvious that first-time buyers out there just want the cash in the hand," Mr Luetchens added.

The study echoes findings published earlier this month by the Building Societies Association (BSA). The BSA reported that most of its members thought that deposits rather than rates of repayment were the main stumbling block for new buyers.


Mortgage rates fall following Bank cut.


Deposits not payments the issue for buyers

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