The most affordable cities for young house-hunters to get on to the property ladder include Southampton, Norwich, Nottingham and Liverpool according to research.
A new report from the Post Office found that the average house price in Southampton – the most affordable city – is £199,074, with 98 per cent of properties in the Hampshire port being possible for first-time buyers.
The least affordable place to buy a property if you’re a first-time buyer is not London despite sky-high house prices in the capital – because salaries are higher too.
The worst location for first-time buyers is Brighton: the average price of a property in the East Sussex coastal town is £352,303 and only 2 per cent of homes are considered to be affordable for first-time buyers.
The figures were calculated by taking the top 14 most densely populated cities and seeing how many homes cost less than 4.5 times the average income of a first-time buyers in those areas.
The second most affordable place to buy a property if you’re a first-time buyer is Norwich in Norfolk, where the average house price is £196,987 and 93 per cent of homes are considered affordable.
In third place is Nottingham, Nottinghamshire and the average house price is £128,192 and 89 per cent of properties. Fourth place is Liverpool, where the average house price is £121,374 and 87 per cent of properties. The report suggested that first-time buyers are increasingly on the move to make their dreams of stepping on the property ladder a reality.
Out of 1,000 who have bought in the last two years, it found that compromise is key, with 70 per cent choosing to buy a home that was on average 26 minutes from their original ‘preferred’ location.
While 16 per cent didn’t have to adjust their expectations at all, other first-time buyers ended up being more flexible. A total of 5 per cent gave up on their dreams of having a garden so that they could buy a home, while 3 per cent gave up on having a car parking space.
The Post Office’s Owen Woodley said: ‘Our research shows that 62 per cent of home sales are still in areas across the country that remain within reach for those looking to take their first steps on the property ladder and first-time buyers can really benefit from thinking outside the box to realise their property aspirations.
If your a First Time Buyer looking to purchase your first home in Liverpool contact Belvoir Liverpool Central on 01512311613 or email us at liverpoolcentral.sales@belvoir.co.uk
