Low interest rates 'will make no difference to first-timers'
The current low mortgage interest rates being seen in the UK will not make much of a difference to first-time buyers, one sector commentator has asserted.
Catherine Hearnden, director of MyMortgageDirect, said this is because the reason higher mortgages have become more affordable is because consumers require a bigger deposit, which many first-time buyers do not have.
"I think more schemes that allow them to borrow deposits is the thing really, [we need] more government schemes that are available to more people," she added.
Ms Hearnden noted in relation to income, current mortgages are more affordable because there is not a high loan-to-value.
Her comments come after figures by the Council of Mortgage Lenders suggested house buyers needed to use less of their income to cover their mortgage interest in November, than at any time for more than five years.
However, with property prices in London higher than elsewhere in the UK on average, first-time buyers may wish to consider flats to rent in Notting Hill while they save up a deposit.
Written by Andy Britten
Published 18th January, 2010
© 2010 Estates IT Limited
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First-time buyers are unlikely to benefit from low interest rates, it has been claimed - which may prompt such house hunters to consider property to rent in London.