We know how much there is to think about when you’re looking to buy your first home.

And if you’re considering buying a place right now, you might be concerned about whether things like soaring energy bills, and rising house prices, will affect your ability to buy.

There are still more people looking to move than there are homes available for sale, and this has pushed the average house price to a record high. This is the case across the property market, including the types of homes that traditionally attract first time buyers. The average price of a first-time buyer home has now risen to £224,943, which means an average 10% deposit now stands at £22,494 for first-time buyers.

Despite this increase, first-time buyers are determined to get on the property ladder, and enjoy a place to call their own. We’ve seen demand for first time buyer properties rise 35% when compared to the last ‘normal’ housing market of 2019.

First-time buyers may have more freedom to home-hunt further afield

One of the lasting effects of the pandemic has been the increase in hybrid working. First time buyers may not need to commute to the office five days a week, which may give the flexibility to consider more locations when searching for their home. Our property expert, Tim Bannister, says:

“Something we’ve seen more of over the last couple of years, particularly with working from home becoming more common, is people looking further away or at a greater number of different areas when looking to move, to see what is available within their budget.”

Since the start of the pandemic, home-hunters have been widening their search area by an average of 58 square kilometres. This will typically show 6,000 more homes in search results on average.