People able to buy homes previously beyond budget, aided by rising wages and looser affordability tests
First-time buyers are taking out larger mortgages than ever before as rising wages and looser affordability tests allow them to buy properties that were previously beyond their budget.
The average first-time buyer borrowed £210,800 in the year to September, a record high, according to analysis by Savills, the property agent.
First-time buyers accounted for 20% of all spending in the UK housing market in the 12-month period, which is the highest level since at least 2007, it added.
This effect is even more pronounced in places such as London, with separate research from the estate agent Hamptons revealing that first-time buyers made more than half of all purchases in the capital this year.
