Renters Face Challenges Saving for Home Deposits

Half of renters have given up the hope of owning a home due to the huge deposits they need to find to climb onto the property ladder.

One in five renters (22 per cent) are intent on saving for a deposit, but are demoralised by needing to save at least £30,000, which will take them an average of 4.8 years to set aside.

To meet the target, renters must save at least £526 per month - a figure that increases with inflation.

However, most renters are saving around £230 monthly, which is less than half of their monthly target.

High street bank Barclays, which published the data, says the timeline is overly optimistic for most savers unless they have a massive change in their finances.

Struggle with housing costs

Across all age groups, the bank explains the report suggests 49 per cent of tenants believe renting is more expensive than paying a mortgage, yet renters are nearly three times more likely to say they struggle with housing costs compared to homeowners.

However, not every renter is looking to jump onto the property ladder for the first time - a fifth (22 per cent) have previously owned a home, including four in 10 (40 per cent) 'later-life' renters over the age of 55.

Barclays claims renters aged 55 and over are more likely to prefer renting as it offers more flexibility for their current life stage.

The data also suggests rental demand will continue to grow as the number of buy-to-let homes falls.

Meanwhile, landlords seeking to enlarge their portfolios or refinance can benefit from falling interest rates and mortgage deal tweaking to unlock further funds.

Cheap mortgage deals

LendInvest has cut interest rates across all products to make them the lender's cheapest deals in three years. Rates now start at 3.24 per cent.

NatWest has trimmed rates on landlord loans.

• Two-year home purchases at 60 per cent loan-to-value (LTV) fall to 4.09 per cent, with no product fee
• Five-year home purchases at 60 per cent LTV fall to 4.08 per cent, with no product fee
• FTB two-year home purchases at 85 per cent LTV fall to 4.39 per cent, with no product fee and £250 cashback

Darlington Building Society has released new five-year landlord fixed rates and increased maximum LTVs from 75 per cent to 80 per cent, including holiday let investors.

Headline rates include:

• BTL five-year fixes at 5.19 per cent, with a £999 fee
• Holiday let five-year fixes at 5.49 per cent, with a £999 fee

Among the lowest two-year fixes is The Mortgage Works' 65 per cent LTV at 2.79 per cent until September 30, 2027. The deal comes with an arrangement fee of 3 per cent of the loan.

The lender has a similar deal priced at 2.99 per cent at 75 per cent LTV until September 30, 2026, with the arrangement fee reduced to 2 per cent of the advance.