Homebuyers in Wales are sacrificing holidays, delaying having children and moving in with family in order to save for a deposit, according to a survey by builder Persimmon Homes.
Forty-three percent of people surveyed said being able to afford a large deposit was the main barrier that faced them when trying to buy their own home, with 20% said high interest rates from mortgage lenders were making it difficult for them to get on the property ladder.
The survey also found that 44% of those with the deposit to buy a house have been saving for three or more years.
Homebuying issues are not only plaguing the first time buyer, second steppers are also facing sacrifices in order to be able to afford their second house. Delaying starting a family while saving for a deposit for a house was just one of the things people admitted doing to help save for a deposit. A quarter of those surveyed also said they had put off having children and 23% admitted they had moved back in with family members.
Holidays were the most sacrificed thing which 44% said they gave up.
After having their daughter Phoebe 18 months ago, Mike and Jess Erskine were looking to upgrade from their small two bedroom house in Swansea to a larger family home.
However, having bought their home in Swansea at the height of the property boom in 2008 for £117,000, the couple were shocked to find the house had plummeted in value within five years and they no longer had enough equity in their house to remortgage. Not only had the couple lost their initial deposit and mortgage repayments, but had to face the real possibility of thousands of pounds worth of negative equity with the value of the home falling well below their remaining £100,000 mortgage.
“When we bought our house five years ago we never in our wildest dreams imagined that we would find ourselves in a situation where we had lost almost £20,000 when we came to sell next,” said Mr Erskine.
“It left us with a huge dilemma. Do we twiddle our thumbs for a few more years and wait for an upturn in the property market or do we sell up now and get saving quickly for that deposit for the next family home? It is so important to us as we want to grow our family and have more children.”
Last month the couple took the bold decision to sell their two bedroom home in Swansea for £92,500 and as a result moved into Jess’s parents home in Bargoed, on a temporary basis to begin saving for another property.
Mr Erskine said: “It was a choice between staying in our first house and not having any more children for the foreseeable future or moving in with Jess’ parents for a few months and saving as much as we can.
“Luckily we have a very supportive family to provide us with somewhere to live whilst we save the money, but like many friends we know in similar circumstances it has meant we have lost our independence in the short-term as a family by not having our own home.
Sharon Robinson, Sales Director for Persimmon Homes said: “The findings of this survey reveal just how high the hurdles are that people are facing when looking to buy their own home. It has been especially hard for people in Wales.”