New Opportunities for First Time Buyers

LONDON, September 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

Despite the gloomy economic forecasts for the UK, First Mortgage are seeing strong numbers of first time buyers and, with new mortgage schemes becoming available, they believe it's an opportunistic time to be a first time buyer.

The confirmation that Britain remains stuck in a double-dip recession may be disheartening for many first time home buyers looking to buy property, but the appetite for home ownership rather than renting remains strong. First Mortgage, one of the UK's longest-established impartial mortgage advisors, explains that a number of emerging new opportunities mean getting a foot on the housing ladder is once again realistic.

A spokesperson for First Mortgage comments, "Whilst lending has tightened in recent years and prospective buyers are required to find large deposits, we are now delighted to see a number of new mortgage schemes available, specifically designed to assist those struggling to get together a deposit." These schemes include Shared Equity, New Supply Shared Equity, LIFT, MI New Home and NewBuy. "These schemes require a deposit of only 5% and, with shared equity options reducing the loan to value amount, the client can benefit from attractive interest rates. Simply put, it is possible for the buyer to live in a better home while having lower monthly expenses."

The MI New Home scheme for instance, which is similar to that of NewBuy in England and just recently became available in Scotland, is a "mortgage indemnity" scheme that allows home buyers to get on to the property ladder with a deposit of as little as 5%. This will effectively provide 90-95% loan to value mortgages, while also giving access to attractive rates that come with new build homes.

Other schemes which offer similar low deposit requirements are the LIFT (short for Low-cost Initiative for First Time Buyers) and shared equity scheme. Again, in both schemes a mortgage can be obtained for as little as a 5% deposit. With the LIFT scheme you will only pay between 60 to 80 percent of the price of the property, while the remainder will be paid for by the Scottish Government, who will hold a security over the proportion of the equity that it has funded. With a normal shared equity scheme, while a similar concept is in place, it is the builder who retains an equity stake. In both cases, however, since your loan to value amount is smaller, the mortgage repayments are often smaller as well.

The spokesperson for First Mortgage continues, "It is a buyer's market, and with affordable mortgage rates and low deposit schemes, it's a great time to be a buyer again. In fact, there are even options available at this very moment to get 100% funding for purchasing a home. It's all down to knowing where to look or, in our case, who to ask for advice."

About First Mortgage:

First Mortgage is a leading UK mortgage broker, having offered free mortgage advice across the whole of market since 1997.

Contact Details:
First Mortgage Direct Ltd.
6 Home Street
Edinburgh, EH3 9LY
UK

+44(0)131-229-8336

SOURCE First Mortgage