- First-time buyers (FTBs) are increasingly compromising on location to fulfil their dream of owning a home – with two thirds (67%) moving to an area they had never been to before1
- Despite moving to a new area, 40% spend less than two hours getting to know their neighbourhood before buying a home there
- Lack of suitable properties and affordability constraints are the main reasons FTBs are buying further afield – with an average saving of £29,000 compared to buying where they lived previously
- Santander UK teams up with actor and TV presenter Ryan Thomas, to share his experience of moving to a new neighbourhood, with a new video series to help FTBs feel at home quickly
Moving further away from family, friends and familiar places to get onto the property ladder is becoming more common for first-time buyers, according to new research from Santander UK. Two-thirds (67%) of Brits who bought their first home in the last two years had never seen their new neighbourhood before buying, compared to just over half (51%) of those who bought more than five years ago.
While most make sacrifices in the type of property they buy, whether that’s fewer bedrooms, less garden space, or taking on a renovation project, Santander UK has found more first-time buyers are increasingly compromising on the location with three in five (60%) moving to an area they had never even heard of, to secure a foot on the property ladder. Being further away from family (70%) and friends (68%) were also among the top compromises. What’s more, in a rush to snap up a dream home, 40% of buyers are spending less than two hours getting to know an area before buying a property there, with many saying they spent more time watching a series on Netflix (23%) or scrolling social media in an average week (21%).
To help first-time buyers feel more at home in unfamiliar areas, Santander has teamed up with actor and presenter Ryan Thomas to challenge him and four first-time buyers to get to know a new neighbourhood in just two hours, from playing a game of pool with the local pub landlord, to finding a new house plant and checking out the local gym. Ryan moved 212 miles from Manchester to Brentwood, Essex, a neighbourhood where he’d never been before, prior to meeting his fiancé, Lucy Mecklenburgh.
Ryan Thomas said: “It can be daunting moving home, especially when you’re building your life in a completely new area. Moving away from my family in Manchester was difficult at first and it takes a while to find your feet in an unfamiliar neighbourhood, but I quickly started to get to know the locals, the great places for food, and where to take the kids for a fun day out. Moving first to Brentwood, and now seven years later, Lucy moving to my hometown Manchester, has shown us both that getting to know a new neighbourhood is full of adventure.”
Over a third (36%) of first-time buyers gave their top reason for moving to an unfamiliar neighbourhood as it being cheaper, while a quarter (24%) said they could not find a property in the neighbourhood they had planned to live in that met their criteria. The distance buyers are looking from their original location is also growing, with last year’s Santander mortgage customers moving on average 23% further from their previous address, compared to the last four years2. Despite being away from loved ones, buying further afield reaps financial reward, with those first-time buyers moving to new neighbourhoods in the last two years saving an average of £29,000 compared to buying a house in the area they lived in before.
Graham Sellar, Head of Mortgage Development at Santander, commented: “There’s a growing trend among first-time buyers to move to neighbourhoods further away from where they grew up, or where they were previously renting. Whether their original area is unaffordable, or they’re deliberately looking to move further afield to get better value for their money, location has become the number one compromise for many first-time buyers.”
To find out how Santander is helping first-time buyers to settle in new neighbourhoods, visit Santander’s First-Time Buyer Hub. To see the first-time buyer videos and how our participants got to know their new neighbourhood, from the gym to the garden centre in just two hours, head to @Santander on Instagram or TikTok.
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Notes to Editors:
1)Survey of 2,000 First-Time Buyers, conducted by Opinium for Santander UK in May 2024.
2)Based on Santander mortgage customer data 2019-2023.
Santander UK is a financial services provider in the UK that offers a wide range of personal and commercial financial products and services. At 30 June 2024, the bank had around 19,600 employees and serves around 14 million active customers, including 7 million digital customers via a nationwide 444 branch network, telephone, mobile and online banking. Santander UK is subject to the full supervision of the FCA and the PRA in the UK. Santander UK plc customers’ eligible deposits are protected by the FSCS in the UK.
Banco Santander (SAN SM, STD US, BNC.LN) is a leading commercial bank, founded in 1857 and headquartered in Spain and one of the largest banks in the world by market capitalization. The group’s activities are consolidated into five global businesses: Retail & Commercial Banking, Digital Consumer Bank, Corporate & Investment Banking (CIB), Wealth Management & Insurance and Payments (PagoNxt and Cards). This operating model allows the bank to better leverage its unique combination of global scale and local leadership. Banco Santander aims to be the best open financial services platform providing services to individuals, SMEs, corporates, financial institutions and governments. The bank’s purpose is to help people and businesses prosper in a simple, personal and fair way. Banco Santander is building a more responsible bank and has made a number of commitments to support this objective, including raising €220 billion in green financing between 2019 and 2030. In the first quarter of 2024, Banco Santander had €1.3 trillion in total funds, 166 million customers, 8,400 branches and 211,000 employees.