It’s getting tougher for first-time buyers to secure their first home in South London

BY JUSSI GRUT
toby@slpmedia.co.uk

Buyers looking to buy homes in the boroughs of Wandsworth, Southwark and Lambeth have been hit with massive increases in starter home prices between 2014-2019, according to research carried out by the modular housing developer Project Etopia.

They claim it is not much of secret that house prices all over the capital are higher than those elsewhere in the county, but for young people trying to buy a home in South London prices of entry level homes have grown much faster than the average house prices in the area.

Prospective buyers looking to buy in Lambeth have been faced with a difference of 110.5 per cent  between the average house price growth and the entry level house price growth, making it the ninth highest borough in London for difference in growth rates.

Sitting at sixth highest in London is Southwark with Just under a 150 per cent difference in growth with entry level price growth being at 54 per cent and average house price growth
at 22 per cent.

With an average house price of £430,000, topping the table in South London just below Kensington and Chelsea and Hammersmith and Fulham is Wandsworth.

With a whopping 283 per cent difference between the entry level growth and average house price growth, people looking to buy in Wandsworth are going to have a very difficult time finding somewhere affordable.

First time buyers Daniel Clayton and Victoria Fitzgerald, who are having trouble finding an affordable home close to where they grew up said: “We’re finding it hard to find a home in South London. Saving five to 10 per cent for a deposit is difficult, increasing house prices are slowly forcing us to look further and further outside of London.

“We would ideally like to stay as close to South London as possible because of work and family but we both understand the financial impact that has.

“If we have to end up doing that then depending on the cost of travel etc. we may have to
start looking for new jobs outside of London.”

There are still some areas on the edges of London that could be considered affordable for first time home buyers.

Bexley despite having larger overall growth rates of 57 per cent for entry level homes and 48 per cent for the average home has a percentage difference of 18.5 per cent.

With an average house price of £357,810, it remains one of the most affordable boroughs in London for first time buyers.