Disappearance of mortgage deals 'will benefit first-time buyers'

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Disappearance of mortgage deals 'will benefit first-time buyers'

Fri 28th Mar 2008

Contrary to a statement released earlier today by the Royal Insitution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics), a spokesman for Firstrung has stated that the recent reduction in available mortgage deals will actually benefit first-time buyers.

Paul Holmes, operations director of Firstrung, argued that as 60 per cent of mortgage products have disappeared from the market over the past year, house prices are bound to fall, which is positive for those looking to get on to the property ladder.

"The cheap and readily available credit has gone so there's only one place for house prices to go and that's to fall quite dramatically," he said.

Mr Holmes noted that first-time buyers will not only benefit from the falling price of existing housing stock but also from new homes - he suggested that house builders have "over-developed massively" and are therefore desperate for customers.

Rics painted a very different picture in its response to the latest Nationwide House Price Survey, which revealed that UK house prices fell for the fifth consecutive month in March.

It suggested that as providers tighten their lending criteria and raise the cost of mortgage loans, first-time buyers will find it increasingly difficult to secure a mortgage.

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