First-time buyers in the North East had the smallest deposits on average. The average first-time buyer deposit in the North East was £10,710 in the three months to July. The second cheapest region in terms of deposits was Scotland, with an average deposit of £15,005, followed by Yorkshire & Humber (£16,760).
In the capital, the average first-time buyer deposit was £62,253 – twice the size of the average deposit in the South West (£31,424) and the South East (£30,133). While in London the average first-time buyer deposit was approximately 25% of the value of the property they were purchasing, in the South West it was just 20% and in the South East that figure fell further to £15%.
David Brown, commercial director at parent company LSL Property Services, said: “Even though house prices are more expensive in the capital and South West, borrowers are able to put down proportionally larger deposits. It’s reflective of typically higher incomes, with people able to save more before getting onto the housing ladder.”
