EAST Dunbartonshire has emerged as the UK’s most affordable area for first-time buyers (FTBs) with its leafy Glaswegian suburbs of Bearsden, Milngavie, Kirkintilloch and Bishopbriggs.
The Bank of Scotland’s First Time Buyer Review said prices in the area averaged out at £97,089 – 2.6 times the local annual gross earnings average.
Five of the UK’s 10 most affordable local authority districts (LADs) for FTBs are in Scotland. Copeland in the north west of England is the UK’s second-most affordable area (2.9), closely followed by East Renfrewshire (3.0), West Dunbartonshire and Stirling (both 3.1). North Lanarkshire is the UK’s eighth most affordable area (3.3).
The least affordable LAD in Scotland for first-timers is Angus, which has a house price to average earnings ratio of 6.1. It is followed by the Western Isles (5.8) and East Lothian (5.2).
According to the survey, the 10 least affordable LADs in the UK for FTBs are all in London. The least affordable is Brent where the average FTB property price of £457,014 is 12.5 times gross average annual earnings in the area.
The average Scottish FTB deposit in May 2016 was £21,7511 – less than the UK average of £33,960.
More than half (53 per cent) of all FTB purchases in Scotland are below the £125,000 starting threshold for stamp duty. This contrasted markedly with Greater London where all FTBs are liable for stamp duty, with 85 per cent of them paying more than £250,000.
Nationally, 45 per cent of properties bought by FTBs are priced between £125,000 and £250,000 with 24 per cent of FTB purchases above £250,000.
The average age of a first-time buyer in Scotland is 30, up from 28 in 2011. Regionally, the average age of a first-time buyer is highest in London (32).
Nicola Noble, Bank of Scotland’s mortgages director, said: “It’s great news for Scottish first-time buyers that five of the UK’s most affordable areas are in Scotland, with East Dunbartonshire topping the table.”
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