The number of property valuations for first-time buyers has risen in all areas of the UK except for London, according to the latest data released this week by UK Finance. The largest increases in first-time buyer valuations were in the north of the country, where over 43% of first-time valuations are for properties priced less than £125,000.
The North East leads the way with an increase of 3.8%, followed by the North West with 3.3%. Across London, valuations in the first half of 2018 were down 3.9% on a year ago.
A quarter of valuations were for properties priced over £500,000, compared to the UK average of just 4%. First-time buyers are currently facing less competition for property from buy-to-let investors.
In the first nine months of 2018 buy-to-let mortgage approvals across the UK have fallen by 13.5% compared to the same period a year ago.
