We could see the current imbalance between first-time-buyers and home movers levelled - Comment on the UK Finance Q1 update from Richard Pike at Phoebus Software

03 June 2021

Following the UK Finance Q1 figures this morning here’s a comment from Richard Pike, which I hope you’ll find of interest for your reporting:

Richard Pike, Phoebus Software sales and marketing director, says “This retrospective view of the first quarter of 2021 throws up no real surprises, however it is interesting to note that first-time-buyer numbers were outpaced by home movers across the country in Q1. This perhaps shows the effect that the stamp duty holiday was having, encouraging a different sector of the market to take advantage, when first-time buyers already had the benefit of SDLT holiday. It also shows the movement across the regions as quality of living became a priority during the pandemic.

“With the government’s ‘First Homes scheme’ launching, along with the availability of 95% mortgages and the new help-to-buy scheme, we could see the current imbalance between first-time-buyers and home movers levelled. As long as the new homes that are needed for these schemes continue to be built.”