Getting out of the centre of town might be the only way first-time buyers can grapple their way onto the housing ladder, but the average time they would be prepared to travel is 43 minutes either way. This is a long commute most would prefer to avoid, but weighing up the priorities is a must for first-timers and to bag themselves a home, something has to give.
Indicative of how motivated to beat off escalating house prices first-time buyers are and how far they would need to travel do so, those living in London are prepared to tackle the longest commute – around 1 hour 30 minutes.
The amount of time people would be prepared to spend getting to work is different across the country. First-time buyers in Scotland said they would travel no longer than 45 minutes, followed by Southerners (excluding London) with 43 minutes, and Midlands and Wales both with 41 minutes. Northerners are least prepared to commute with a maximum of 39 minutes.
Sue Hayes, Abbey director of mortgages, said: “The current level of prices inside Britain’s major towns and cities mean more and more first-time buyers are finding that they have to buy further than they’d like from their workplace. Even so, our research shows that many first-time buyers are still not fully aware of how far they might have to commute each day in order to get onto the housing ladder.”
