What is the average deposit for first-time buyers in 2023?
In the UK, first-time buyers save between £26,400 and £144,500 on a home purchase. Learn how much people save for a home in different areas of the country.
First-time buyers in the UK are expected to pay an average deposit of £34,500 for a £240,000 home in 2023. The deposit on the property amounts to 15%.
Depending on your location in the UK and the amount of deposit you wish to pay, you will need to save different amounts. You can now buy a house with no deposit at all thanks to 100% mortgages.
It’s back to 100% mortgages! You can also take advantage of the 95% mortgage scheme until the end of 2023.
How does the mortgage guarantee scheme work?
The majority of first-time buyers put down a larger deposit for their first home – about 24 percent of the total purchase price, according to UK Finance.
It’s because lenders offer better mortgage rates to borrowers with a larger deposit.
In order to put a 24% deposit on a property worth £240,000, you would need to save £57,600.
The cost of stepping onto the property ladder in the UK is staggering, so let’s take a closer look.
Using our data, we calculated the average property prices for first-time buyers in each region.
The average deposit paid by first-time buyers in each region is provided by UK Finance.
For each regional property value, we’ve also shown how much a 15% deposit would cost.
In 2023, here are the average deposits paid by first-time buyers in the most expensive and cheapest areas.
First-time buyers: what you need to know
12. Deposits for first-time buyers in London
London, where the average first home costs £425,000, is at the top of the market.
The average first-time buyer will pay a 34% deposit, or £144,500, according to UK Finance.
The same value property would cost £63,750 with a 15% deposit.
First-time buyers will, however, be pleased to learn that the capital is an exception and most first homes are significantly cheaper elsewhere in the country.
11. Deposits for first-time buyers in the South East
Including Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, Surrey and West Sussex, the South East of England is the second most expensive area in the UK after London for first-time buyers.
First-time buyers here pay £300,000 for a property, using a 24% deposit of £72,000.
First-time buyers will need to save £45,000 for a 15% deposit.
10. Deposits for first-time buyers in the East of England
In addition to Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, and Suffolk, the East of England is one of the most expensive regions for first-time buyers.
According to our data, the average first home costs £300,000.
First-time buyers pay an average deposit of 24%, or $72,000.
You would save £45,000 if you paid a 15% deposit for the same property.
9. Deposits for first-time buyers in the South West
As a result of the pandemic, the South West became one of the UK’s most popular destinations to buy a home.
Aside from Bristol, Cornwall, Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset, and Wiltshire, the south west is also home to Bath, Cheltenham, Exeter, and Plymouth.
In this area, the average first-time buyer home costs £220,000. Most buyers save a 24% deposit, or £52,800.
A 15% deposit would amount to £33,000 if they saved it.
8. Deposits for first-time buyers in the East Midlands
First-time buyer prices in the East Midlands drop below £200,000 to £190,000.
Here you’ll find Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, and Rutland, as well as Derby, Leicester, and Nottingham.
Here, the average deposit on a £190,000 home is 24%, or £45,600.
First-time buyers would need to save £28,500 if that amount became a 15% deposit.
7. Deposits for first-time buyers in the West Midlands
In the West Midlands, which includes Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Shakespeare’s Warwickshire, and Worcestershire, first-time homebuyers pay an average of £190,000.
In order to secure their first home, buyers would need to save up £45,600 using the average 24% deposit paid.
Nevertheless, if they saved a 15% deposit, that would be $28,500.
6. Deposits for first-time buyers in the North West
For the average first-time buyer in the North West, the average first-time home costs £150,000.
North West England includes Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester and Lancashire, as well as Manchester and Liverpool, the third most populous cities in England.
Here, the average deposit paid by a first-time buyer is £36,000, or 24% of the total property value.
The amount of a 15% deposit would be £22,500.
5. Deposits for first-time buyers in Wales
For first-time buyers in Wales, the average property costs £150,000.
Here, the average deposit is also £36,000, with a 15% deposit equaling £22,500.
4. Deposits for first-time buyers in Yorkshire and Humber
Besides Leeds, York, Bradford, and Sheffield, Yorkshire and The Humber encompasses the counties of East Riding of Yorkshire, North Yorkshire (excluding areas in the Tees Valley of North East England), South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, North Lincolnshire, and North East Lincolnshire, as well as the beautiful Yorkshire Dales.
Buying a first home here costs around £140,000, with a deposit of 24%, or £33,600.
It would cost £21,000 to buy a first-time home here with a 15% down payment.
3. Deposits for first-time buyers in Scotland
The average first-time buyer property price in Scotland is £135,000, although prices vary by region.
In Edinburgh, the average home can cost up to £485,000, while in Glasgow, the average home can cost up to £268,500.
The average price of properties in Aberdeen is £111,500, while in Ayreshire it is £137,000.
The typical first-time buyer pays £32,400 as a deposit when purchasing a property worth £135,000.
This would be equivalent to £20,250 if they paid a 15% deposit.
2. Deposits for first-time buyers in Northern Ireland
The average price of a first-time buyer property in Northern Ireland is £130,000, and the average deposit paid is £31,200, or 24 percent of the property’s value.
First-time buyers need to save up £19,500 for a 15% deposit.
1. Deposits for first-time buyers in the North East
In the affordability charts, the cheapest place to buy a first-time home is in the North East, which includes Tyne and Wear, County Durham, and part of North Yorkshire.
For a first property here, the average deposit is £26,400, or 24%.
In contrast, if you saved £16,500, it would provide a 15% deposit for an 85% loan-to-value mortgage.