Lenders ‘loosening purse strings’

Borrowers may now be able to get an 85 per cent mortgage without being “heavily penalised”, it has been stated.

Richard Hair, past president of the National Association of Estate Agents, said that there has been a “little loosening of the purse strings” by lenders.

He noted that this could help to make life “that little bit easier” for those looking to get onto the property ladder.

Mr Hair remarked that this easing of lending is a “very welcome sign” for the housing market and noted that in December, first-time buyers were putting down deposits of 30 per cent to buy a home.

This could help them in becoming debt free in the long term as they will have borrowed less of the property’s value.

Mr Hair was commenting on newly-released Council of Mortgage Lenders figures, which showed that the average first-time buyer borrowed 3.1 times their income and spent 17.1 per cent of their earnings on repayments.

By Jamie Price