Future new-build hotspots for stretched buyers

We've been building the wrong’ homes and sales are dipping so where should first-time buyers look now, asks Anna White

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Assisted by the Government's now-obsolete Help to Buy programme (and sometimes with discounts from the developer) newly built flats in regeneration schemes have been the stomping ground of the first-time buyer. Although there is a price premium on new homes over existing ones, a studio or one-bed apartment has often been the most affordable way on to the property ladder.

However, the number of first-time buyers purchasing a home on a new development has dwindled in the absence of Help to Buy and following interest rate rises. Prior to the pandemic, 45 per cent of purchases of a new build in London were made by first-time buyers. This has plummeted to 27 per cent, according to Savills.

The analysis reveals that the average first-time buyer can only afford a new-build property in just over a third of postcodes in London, limiting choice and appeal for young buyers.

"First-time buyers seem to be struggling to access the new-build market," says Gaby Foord, analyst at Savills. She identifies barriers such as location, price and product types.

Building the wrong homes for young Londoners