The research showed 20 per cent of so-called first-time buyers are actually 'returners' - homeowners that temporarily left owner-occupation. Returners tend to be older and have higher deposits than true first-time buyers which has raised concerns that affordability figures may be distorted. Andy Pratt, chief operations officer at Alexander Hall, said: "I think there's always a concern about research that includes returners. It would be nice if they could be excluded from first-time buyer analysis.
"Over the years affordability has been a growing issue for this complex group but now the market is flattening out and deposits are being funded from different sources, for example, parents, so there is a bit of time for them to catch-up."
Short-term aspirations of first-time buyers concerning home-ownership have declined with 43 per cent expecting to buy within two years. Although 80 per cent expect to buy within ten years, the CML said it is clear affordability constraints facing young households are stalling first-time buyers from committing to a mortgage. The average age of the first-time buyer has risen from 31 in 1984 to 34.
Student debt and relaxed attitudes to drawing unsecured personal loans are thought to be two main contributors to the increasing age of first-time buyers. Triggers to buying a home, such as marriage and children, are also occurring later in life.
Peter Williams, deputy director-general of the CML, said: "This research clearly shows the first-time buyer market is much more complex than it at first appeared. The reasons for the recent decline in first-time buyers are attributable to more than just affordability constraints and first-time buyers themselves are a varied group."
