17
Nov
Buying houses for sale 'cheaper than renting'
People could be tempted to look to buy houses for sale after it was
revealed that being a property owner is cheaper than renting in 80
per cent of the UK.
Zoopla reported that this is an increase from 74 per cent in July
2010, revealing that the average two-bedroom flat costs 9.9 per
cent more than a similar property with an interest-only mortgage at
five per cent.
In York and Birmingham it was 39 per cent more expensive to rent
than buy, while 12 more cities and towns saw rents exceed mortgage
payments by 20 per cent.
Director of the firm Nicholas Leeming said: "We're now seeing a
real insider-outsider divide in the housing market."
He added that while people would be better off owning properties
rather than renting them, "the doorway to entry into the housing
market is narrower than ever".
Mr Leeming blamed the difficulty of getting a mortgage and high
deposits as a deterrent for many potential first-time buyers.
Last week, the Rent Index found that over the last six months rents
grew by 4.75 per cent and during the last three, they rose by 2.22
per cent.