A first-time buyer (FTB) is a potential house buyer who has not previously purchased a residential

property Property is a system of rights that gives people legal control of valuable things, and also refers to the valuable things themselves. Depending on the nature of the property, an owner of property may have the right to consume, alter, share, re ...

. The term is primarily used in the British, Irish, Canadian, and U.S. property markets, as well as other countries.

Characteristics

A first-time buyer is usually desirable to a seller as they do not have to sell a property, and as such will not involve a housing chain. In the US, Canada, and Australia, the average age of first-time buyers is usually around their mid-30s, while in the UK it's between 25 and 34 years old.

Decision to buy a home

There are many factors a first-time buyer may need to consider before purchasing their first property; how much initial cash they will need for

stamp duty Stamp duty is a tax that is levied on single property purchases or documents (including, historically, the majority of legal documents such as cheques, receipts, military commissions, marriage licences and land transactions). Historically, a ...

and any

solicitor A solicitor is a lawyer who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and enabled to p ...

s fees, and if they need to arrange a

mortgage A mortgage loan or simply mortgage (), in civil law (legal system), civil law jurisdictions known also as a hypothec loan, is a loan used either by purchasers of real property to raise funds to buy real estate, or by existing property owners t ...

how much are they able to afford. In many countries such as

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

home ownership is seen as a natural step in the life cycle and the natural form of property tenure. Canada and Australia have some of the most ownership rate in word (all above 65%)

home ownership Owner-occupancy or home-ownership is a form of housing tenure in which a person, called the owner-occupier, owner-occupant, or home owner, owns the home in which they live. The home can be a house, such as a single-family house, an apartment, c ...

. Ireland has one of the highest proportions of owner-occupiers in the EU at around 80%.

UK mortgages

As of 2021, first-time buyers represented 50% of all mortgage house purchases in the UK. In Ireland, FTB's represent 34% of the market. The number of new buyers purchasing property declines when housing becomes unaffordable. In the 2007 Scottish parliamentary election the

Scottish National Party The Scottish National Party (SNP; ) is a Scottish nationalist and social democratic party. The party holds 61 of the 129 seats in the Scottish Parliament, and holds 9 out of the 57 Scottish seats in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, ...

proposed a £2,000 grant for first-time buyers to help them get onto the property ladder. Grants have not been forthcoming in the rest of the UK, but in July 2007 Housing Minister

Yvette Cooper Yvette Cooper (born 20 March 1969) is a British politician who has served as Home Secretary since July 2024. A member of the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, Cooper has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), member of parliament (MP) for Po ...

announced it would be broadening the government's Homebuy Shared Equity scheme to help buyers. "Unless we act now by 2026 first-time buyers will find average house prices are ten times their salary. That could lead to real social inequality and injustice," Cooper told

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

. Since then, first time buyers have regained momentum in the market, with reports in 2010 citing first-time buying as the most popular of consumer enquiries for a local, whole of market mortgage adviser - accounting for 37% of total enquiries. In 2016 the UK Government launched the Help to Buy ISA for first time buyers through incentivising them to use savings to fund a deposit on a property. The money saved is then boosted by 25% up to a maximum of £3000. In April 2017, the Lifetime ISA was launched. It was launched to replace the Help to Buy ISA (which was closed in Nov 2019). The Lifetime ISA gives a similar 25% top-up from the government towards a First Time Buyer's home purchase, but also gives the flexibility to save the money and the top-up for retirement. The First Homes Scheme was launched in June 2021, which enabled first-time buyers, local people and key workers to purchase a property at a discounted rate. The UK Help to Buy equity loan scheme closed to new applicants on 31 October 2022. In May 2023, first-time buyer mortgage approvals in Ireland reached their highest levels since 2011, according to the Banking and Payments Federation of Ireland (BPFI).

References

{{reflist Housing in the United Kingdom Housing in the Republic of Ireland Economy of the Republic of Ireland Real estate bubbles of the 2000s

Characteristics

Decision to buy a home

UK mortgages

See also

References