Being a ‘first-time buyer’ has significant benefits.
As a first-time buyer, your offer is not conditional upon the sale of a chain of other properties in order for you to proceed. In other words, by definition, you don’t have a property to sell. You’re also flexible in terms of your move, for the same reason. And there are financial benefits too, including qualification for participation in special First-time buyer ISA schemes, Help to Buy schemes and, perhaps most significantly, exemption for the requirement to pay stamp duty land tax (SDLT) in certain instances.
So, what is a first-time buyer?
The definition of a first-time buyer has been set out by the government in a guidance note published in 2018. It states the following;
“In order to count as a first time buyer, a purchaser must not;
If the property is purchased jointly, all the purchasers must meet these conditions”.
Some lenders however, do offer their First Time Buyer schemes to purchasing couples when only one of the applicants meets the first time buyer criteria.
Skipton Building Society launches ‘Delayed Start’ mortgage meaning first time buyers won’t be required to make repayments for the first three months.
According to a survey by Skipton, first time buyers who bought their home in the last five years found that in the first three months of living there, they were spending upwards of £30,000.
5 days ago
If you have recently moved into a property with a garden that requires a little TLC, or you’d like to get on top of your current green space, check out our tips.
8 days ago
High street lender, NatWest, have launched a new product to help first-time buyers purchase a property with assistance from a family member or friend to get them on the property ladder sooner.
‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ (BNPL) schemes, such as ‘Klarna’ are short-term loans that allow shoppers to make a purchase, but delay paying for it for an agreed amount of time.
Klarna is one of the most popular BNPL services with 18 million customers in the UK alone, and offers interest-free payment options which is appealing to shoppers. However, does it affect a mortgage application?
14 days ago
We look at how to get the best Buy to Let mortgage rate, what's in store going forward, and options as a landlord with increasing costs.
23 days ago
Throughout this past week, lenders have continued to reduce their mortgage rates giving borrowers in the UK some welcome news following the change in global tariffs under US President, Donald Trump.
23 days ago
Did you know that buying a house, or relocating is in the top 10 most stressful life events?
Stress of course is an unavoidable part of life and there are many reasons why people experience stress, not just buying a house!
There are lots of effective ways to manage and reduce stress, check out our tips to help you.
With the stamp duty relief ending in England and Northern Ireland, we have listed the top 10 cheapest areas for first-time buyers as published by Rightmove.