News article 28/05/2013

(Issued 28 May 2013) 
 

Industry body Homes for Scotland, which represents companies building 95% of new homes built for sale, today welcomed figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders showing home ownership as the long-term tenure of choice for 78% of Scots and lending to the vital First Timer Buyer (FTB) market north of the border increasing by 10% in the first quarter of 2013 compared to a year earlier¹.

The organisation’s Chief Executive Philip Hogg said:

“Today’s figures confirming the home owning aspirations of Scots highlights the importance of finding ways to enable creditworthy buyers step onto and move up the property ladder to help remove pressures elsewhere in the housing system and get our industry building again. News that lending to vital FTBS is also up is a further welcome boost but disappointingly we note that home mover activity is subdued.

“With Scottish buyers requiring an average deposit of 25%, they still need to overcome huge financial barriers. Initiatives such as the MI New Home scheme, which enables creditworthy buyers to purchase a new build home with as little as a 5% deposit and also incorporates part exchange through Bank of Scotland and Nationwide, are therefore hugely important in keeping the market moving.”

Ends

Notes to Editors:

1. CML web site