What Do You Need to Get on the Property Ladder?

A recent survey carried out by RightMove on behalf of the Guardian has underlined just what First Time Buyers (FTB’s) currently need in order to take that vital first step onto the property ladder. Essentially, it’s claimed that those requirements amount to three key ingredients – a degree, a partner to share the costs and benevolent relatives who are prepared to help.

Over 5,000 FTB’s took part in the survey which found that one in four would be seeking assistance from their parents in order to fund a deposit. However, 53% of those surveyed claimed that they would be funding their purchase alone.

Overall, 38% of those surveyed were educated up to degree level and 30% held some form of postgraduate qualification. While the survey took in respondents of all ages, it was found that, of those between the ages of 25 – 34, 41% held a degree.

The findings were intended to underline just how difficult it is to get on the property ladder as house prices have risen beyond income increases in recent years. In addition, the perception is that lending criteria has made it increasingly difficult to obtain a mortgage but do these results really back those claims up?

You could reverse the headline to suggest that three in four respondents weren’t seeking financial assistance from their parents and for some, the fact that over half of FTB’s surveyed are buying a property alone is a significantly high figure.

Earlier this month, RightMove produced another survey of FTB’s which they claimed had provided some positive results as those buyers came to terms with the economic downturn. The findings revealed that of those looking to purchase a property within twelve months, three in ten were FTB’s and this was the highest level for almost three years.

Reacting to the news, Rightmove’s Miles Shipside said,

“The results come as a welcome surprise, hopefully this three year high in intending first-time buyers will come to fruition.”

“The property market needs this upward trend in first-time buyer activity to continue as first-time buyers perform an essential role at the bottom of the property market food chain. “

Mr Shipside also added a warning that the future for FTB’s was far from certain but, on the face of things, there are two sets of conflicting reports from the same source in the same month. Alternatively, perhaps this just emphasises that there are times when statistics can be viewed in two separate ways.