Only 8% of first-time buyers in the UK are opting for newbuild homes, in a steady decline since 2022 when the new properties were favoured by 10% of new homeowners.
According to data from CompareMyMove, only Scotland has seen an increase in popularity for brand new homes within the last year, with a 2.43% rise taking the share of the market to 9.38%. In Wales, only 4.27% of buyers opt for newbuild, down 2.62% over the same period. The East of England has the highest percentage of first-time buyers looking for newbuilds, with 10.01%.
Dave Sayce, founder and managing director of Compare My Move, says the fall from favour is due to the high costs of purchasing a brand new property.
He explained:
“Being a first-time buyer is getting harder, the average cost of a new build home in England as of October last year was £420,000, rising 18% from the previous year. Now with the reduction of the Stamp Duty relief for first-time buyers, the tax they will have to pay on an average new-build home will be £6,000. Even with a 5% deposit, first-time buyers will have to pay £27,000 up front on average. That’s without the mortgage, conveyancing, snagging, and removals costs.”
The number of available newbuilds in Scotland could be behind their popularity, according to CompareMyMove. There are 3.64 newbuilds for every 1,000 people north of the border, while in England there are 2.75 and just 1.51 in Wales.
Scotland’s New Supply Shared Equity scheme, which allows buyers to own 100% of their home while paying as little as 60% of its value, is also a factor, the company said.
