South East’s first time buyers given £70,000 lifeline

Fri, Jul 28th 2006, 11:00

First time buyers struggling to make it onto the housing ladder in the south east of England are about to be given a helping hand by developer Redrow with its award winning Debut range.

Debut homes requiring an initial outlay of just £62,995* are due to go on sale in Sittingbourne, Kent in October – and buy-to-let investors are specifically excluded from snapping them up.

The one and two-bedroom homes are being introduced at a time when the average house in Sittingbourne is said to cost upwards of £172,000 and the average flat or terrace – the typical domain of first time buyers – will set someone back £119,000 or £133,000 respectively in the town.

According to the Halifax, the UK’s largest mortgage lender, Sittingbourne was among the four-fifths of towns surveyed in the south east of England that required an income in excess of local average earnings to buy a property at the average price paid by first time buyers. Among the most expensive places were the Kent towns of Sevenoaks and Maidstone.

Nationally the number of first time buyers is said by the Halifax to have reached a 25 year low, with only an estimated 320,000 first-time buyers in 2005 - the lowest annual total since 1980. Another major lender, Bradford & Bingley, revealed that 42% of first time buyers now receive help from their parents to buy their first home; and one in 10 are so desperate to get on the property ladder that they are taking a second job to make it possible.

It’s against this backdrop that first time buyers will be cheered by the news that Redrow’s first Debut development in the south of England is preparing to launch – hot on the heels of hugely successful Debut ventures in the midlands, north west and North Wales, which attracted long queues and in some instances same-day sell outs.

George Cronin, managing director for Redrow Homes (Eastern), says: “Debut is Redrow’s solution to making home ownership accessible, affordable and easy to manage for first time buyers, with a legal framework in place to prevent buy-to-let investors purchasing the homes.

“Our experience in other parts of the country is that these homes are being bought by people in their 20s and 30s, many of them key workers such as firemen, nurses and teachers. Many of these people have previously had little or no chance of affording a home of their own.

“The option of deferring up to 10% of the purchase price as an interest free fixed sum makes Debut even more affordable and purchasers also benefit from a single monthly payment to cover all utility bills and external maintenance, which helps them to budget.”

Debut @ Sittingbourne will feature 70 private sale one- and two-bedroom homes, with customers able to defer up to 10% of the purchase price for up to 10 years through Redrow’s ‘Easi-buy’ option.

Prices will start from £69,995 for a single-storey one-bedroom home, requiring an initial outlay of just £62,995 for those choosing to use Easi-buy. Even the largest two-storey, two-bedroom home with additional workspace will be priced at £119,995 (an initial outlay of £107,995 with Easi-buy) – which is well below the stamp duty threshold.

The Debut range features a combination of traditional and modern materials to give a contemporary look that’s visually appealing as well as practical. The overall result is a home that first time buyers can aspire to – brand new, contemporary, built to high quality standards and easy to maintain, as well as affordable.

Debut takes an unconventional approach to modern apartment living by turning things upside down - literally. Areas such as the open plan lounge and kitchen are located upstairs in two-storey properties, while bedrooms and bathrooms are at entrance level, giving a fresh twist to apartment living. High vaulted ceilings and tall windows with Juliet balconies in the living areas of two-bedroom designs allow for natural light to pour in, creating a further dimension of space.

These same designs, at locations including Rugby, in Staffordshire, have helped Redrow win several major awards, most recently ‘Major Housebuilder of the Year’ at the 2006 Building Awards and ‘Housebuilder of the Year’ from consumer property magazine Your New Home. They have also earned an inaugural BREEAM Award for their eco-friendly and sustainable qualities.

Debut @ Sittingbourne will be located off Jacinth Drive, about one-and-a-half miles from Sittingbourne’s railway station, from where trains to London Victoria or Cannon Street take a little over an hour. There are also easy commuter links to the M25.

The ground breaking homes will go on sale in October but Redrow is urging potential buyers to register their interest early as there will be a qualifying period to establish people’s eligibility and ability to buy, after which reservations will be taken on a ‘first come, first served’ basis.