The Intermediary – October 2026 - Flipbook - Page 13
RESIDENTIAL
Opinion
A deposit is one
part of the first-time
buyer challenge
T
he proposed ‘Your
First Home’ scheme
is aimed at a problem
that brokers come
across in almost every
conversation with
aspiring homeowners. Many people
have a sensible plan, a steady income
and a genuine wish to buy, yet saving
for the deposit feels so far out of
reach that they’ve stopped thinking
homeownership is for them.
A scheme offering first-time
buyers (FTBs) in England the chance
to buy a new-build home with a
2.5% deposit and backed by a 20%
Government equity loan could make a
real difference for many households.
It’ll be particularly helpful for buyers
who don’t have the ‘Bank of Mum and
Dad’, and are finding it hard to save
while covering rent, bills, and other
everyday costs.
Income and property price caps, the
interest-free period and what happens
once it ends will all decide whether
the scheme gives people a workable
way in rather than bringing forward a
problem they still have to solve later.
Our recent research found that
nearly half of UK adults (46%)
aren’t confident they could apply
for a mortgage in their current
circumstances. Around one in eight
(12%) had decided not to apply because
they assumed they would fail.
Some won’t be ready to buy yet,
and not every application will get a
yes, but I think we should take that
12% who are counting themselves out
before they’ve spoken to a broker or
lender seriously.
Part of this is confidence, and part
of it is that the market still isn’t great
with people who don’t have a single
monthly salary. Plenty of would-be
buyers are self-employed, on contract,
paid partly in commission, or juggling
multiple jobs, and that doesn’t always
fit a standard application.
In my experience, these are oen
people with perfectly solid finances
who need their circumstances looked
at properly. A form can only tell you so
much, and brokers are oen the ones
who can see beyond the numbers and
work out whether there’s a sensible
way forward.
Longer mortgage terms are part
of this, too. They can bring monthly
payments down enough to be the
difference between buying a home and
staying stuck renting. For some buyers
a lower monthly payment could be
what lets them stay near family or
work, rather than moving somewhere
cheaper just to afford a home.
Clear advice
There are trade-offs, of course. A
longer term usually means paying
more interest overall, and may take
borrowing further into later life.
People need clear advice on what that
means for them, including how their
income might change and whether
they could shorten the term or
overpay later.
I don’t think a 40- or 50-year term
should automatically be treated as a
bad outcome, though. For a buyer in
their 20s or 30s, they act as an enabler.
It can give them flexibility when
they need it. Their income may grow
and they may be able to overpay or
remortgage onto a shorter term later
down the line.
It comes down to making sure the
mortgage works today, and that there
is a plan for tomorrow.
That is why the Budget later this
month must look beyond the deposit.
The ‘Your First Home’ scheme could
make a real difference for people who
can’t meet the upfront cost of buying,
and it could also give the new-build
AARON SHINWELL
is chief lending officer at
Nottingham Building Society
The ‘Your First Home’
scheme could make a real
difference for people who
can’t meet the upfront
cost of buying, and it
could also give the newbuild market a boost
when developers need
more certainty”
market a boost when developers need
more certainty.
If we want to help more people buy
homes and stay in them comfortably,
we also need lending that reflects how
people work and live now.
Brokers have an important part
to play here, as they talk to these
prospective buyers and see their
whole situation. They can help buyers
understand the difference between
geing a mortgage and geing one
that still feels manageable a few years
down the line. That view should be
part of the conversation as the scheme
takes shape.
No single policy will fix
homeownership – we just need more
homes, beer routes into finance
and a market that gives people a
fair hearing.
I hope this gives first-time buyers
more than a way to open the door, as it
should give them a realistic chance of
staying on the other side of it. ●
October 2026 | The Intermediary
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