UK mortgage market review seeks lower buyers’ deposit requirements
Deposit #Deposit
LONDON (Reuters) -British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Thursday his government would launch a comprehensive review of the mortgage market to examine how to improve access to low deposit mortgages.
“Today, I can announce a comprehensive review of the mortgage market, reporting back this autumn it will look at how we can give our nation of aspiring homeowners better access to low deposit mortgages,” Johnson said in a speech on the economy.
Johnson made the announcement as part of a wide-ranging speech setting out his economic vision of how the country will cope with rising global inflation.
Johnson said many working people paying high rents could afford to pay a mortgage but struggled to save up for historically high deposits.
“The ever-spiralling price of a house or flat has so inflated deposit requirements that saving even just 10% is a wholly unrealistic proposition for them,” he said.
A separate statement issued by the government said the review had the aim of making it easier for renters by widening access to low-cost, low-deposit finance such as 95% mortgages.
“This will be the first comprehensive review of the mortgage market for a decade, seeking bold and innovative steps that government and industry can take to support more first-time buyers into homeownership,” that statement said.
(Reporting by Farouq Suleiman; writing by Kate Holton, editing by Elizabeth Piper)