UK property has been getting the highest inquiries from first-time buyers since June 2017, as per the data of UK finance. As per Land Registry figures, house prices increased 3.2 per cent in August. The transactions are gaining every month, keeping growth stimulated.  

The company found more than 90 per cent of mortgage lenders processed more than 35,500 requests for the mortgage that were completed in August by the new first-time buyer, which shows at least a 2 per cent increase y-o-y. 

In August, during the same time, at least 6,000 buy-to-let homes were bought, which was 13 per cent low as compared to last year and reported a fall of 2.3 per cent in the month compared to the same period in the last year's in-home mortgage.

Currently, investors seeking a property which have been rented have to pay taxes on capital gains on profits through sales of 28 per cent. Experts believe the regional markets are stable, but the lack of landlords will increase rents, and there will be pressure on the upper end due to low supply.

The First-Time Buyer Go for Buy to Let

First-time buyers are attracted to weaker buy-to-let markets where some property websites claim that first-time buyers are paying on an average £190,000 for the first home compared to £307,000 across markets. The money spent on buy-to-let property was 30 per cent below 2015, where the trends were negative due to the change in the way property is taxed. 

The North East remains a key popular destination for the buyer where one can get a low-cost property at an average price of £150,000 – as per Rightmove.
The buy-to-let market continues to be affected by tax changes and regulatory issues. Nevertheless, new provisions are expected to relieve landlords from selling to the tenant.

Buyers Seeking North

The tax increase forced investors to seek cheaper homes in the northern regions where the stamp duties are lower and returns are higher on investments. The demand for rental property is higher in London due to affordability issues, where mobile younger working population require homes for rent.  

The average price of homes bought by landlords in the first half reduced by 4 per cent to £174,580; in comparison, the buy-to-let was 7 per cent down as compared to the peak in 2016.

Brexit Impact

Uncertainty due to Brexit hit some regions, but some experts find a property below £250,000 is selling with greater growth than the higher-end market. The Midlands, Scotland, and Yorkshires have the quickest moving property where the sellers get buyers in 30 to 40 days. Buyers also like the cities Northampton, Birmingham, and Edinburgh. 

On average, the property gets the buyer in less than 22 days; in Edinburgh, the host city of commonwealth 2022, Birmingham has hundreds of jobs and homes to move to and a range of attractive rental properties. In addition, cities such as Manchester boast properties where one can buy five for the same cost as one in London.

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