FTBs 'should wait for better mortgage deals before buying'

Date:Tuesday 12th May 2009
Author: Max Freedman

Potential first-time buyers (FTBs) who are considering purchasing a home should wait until the deals being offered by mortgage lenders have improved.

This is according to Paul Holmes, chief executive officer of property advice website Firstrung, who suggested that such people should delay securing home loans until banks and building societies begin providing mortgages with "sensible levels of deposit".

He stated that to buy at the moment, when lenders are asking for deposits of up to 30 and 40 per cent, would not be wise.

The expert said: "When they start offering mortgages with ten per cent deposits, freely available, that will tell a FTB that the market has bottomed out."

However, the results of a survey conducted recently by Rightmove suggested that nearly seven in ten potential FTBs believe now is a good time to invest in property, while 21 per cent reported a belief that it is better to buy now than to delay purchasing for a year.