Comment: Has it ever been easy for Herts-based first-time buyers?
Getting on the property ladder in St Albans or Harpenden has never been simple. Picture: Getty Images/iStockphoto, - Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto
Getting on the property ladder in St Albans or Harpenden was tricky enough before COVID-19, but since lockdown it’s got a whole lot more complicated.
First-time buyers looking to buy in our famously pricey part of Herts now also have to cope with lenders shelving their 5 and 10 per cent deposit deals, leaving some wannabe borrowers wondering if they’re ever going to be able to afford their own home.
Henry Jordan of Nationwide Building Society described the outlook for the mortgage market and house prices as “uncertain”, adding: “We need to ensure our members can afford their repayments, while doing what we can to protect them from falling into negative equity.”
But has it ever been easy? Writer Richard Burton looked back on his days as a young reporter in this week’s feature, and recalled struggling to buy in times of high interest rates and ever-increasing asking prices.
Currently, banks and building societies are predicting a sharp fall in property prices, with Lloyds anticipating a 30 per cent drop over three years, while Nationwide is expecting a more modest 14 per cent fall.
For now at least, things feel very different locally. A friend has just offered the asking price on a property after missing out on another that went for £10,000 over.
You may also want to watch:
Agents tell me that multiple offers are regularly being received on family homes around the £1 million mark – a price point that’s long seen a shortage of supply, particularly when a good school catchment is added to the mix.
So are St Albans and Harpenden safe from a coronavirus-induced housing crash? Nowhere can ever be 100 per cent resilient to something like this, but the signs are hopeful that our area will be among the most COVID-proof.
Most Read
- 1 'Kick-ass' St Albans business campaigns for period pants tax removal
- 2 Woman loses more than £1000 in St Albans cashpoint distraction scam
- 3 Your school heroes - praise for teachers and support staff during third lockdown
- 4 14 St Albans things that are gone but not forgotten
- 5 Property Spotlight: A stunning conversion in the heart of Harpenden
- 6 More things which have gone but are not forgotten in St Albans
- 7 'We are determined to get on top of this, and we will': Inside St Albans' COVID vaccination centre
- 8 Is lockdown working in Herts? Here's what the latest data tells us
- 9 St Albans district has Herts' lowest COVID-19 infection rate
- 10 New rules are a further nail in the coffin for pubs
Regardless, some first-time buyers may find themselves resorting to what Richard did, and buying out of the area. A frustrating state of affairs, but in the case of our Harpenden-based correspondent at least, only a temporary one.