Mortgage broker who bought her first home at 18 warns that today's young buyers face a fundamentally different market
The average age of a first-time buyer in England has risen from 29 to 34 over the past three decades, and the share of buyers under 25 has fallen from nearly a quarter to just 6%.
Michelle Niziol (pictured top), chief executive of IMS Property Group, who purchased her first property at 18 without family financial support, says the shift reflects a market that has moved far beyond the reach of many young people.
More than half of first-time buyers now require two or more full-time incomes to afford a home, and mortgage terms exceeding 30 years have become increasingly common as borrowers seek to reduce monthly repayments. Many are also depending on family assistance to fund deposits — a route that is not available to all.
"Should buying a home depend on whether your parents or wider family are able to help?" Niziol said. "Many families simply don't have that kind of money or put their own retirement or financial security at risk trying to help."
Niziol argues that brokers have a responsibility to expand the conversation beyond straightforward mortgage placement. She notes that first-time buyers often overestimate the deposit required and may be unaware of products designed for those whose circumstances fall outside conventional lending criteria, including low-deposit mortgages, shared ownership schemes and arrangements that allow parental support without large upfront transfers.
"Good advice isn't always about finding a mortgage immediately," Niziol pointed out. "Sometimes the honest answer is that someone isn't ready to buy yet. That doesn't mean the conversation should end there though — they still need help understanding what is holding them back and what they need to work towards, whether that's saving for longer, reducing existing commitments or building a stronger credit history."
Beyond individual advice, Niziol calls for structural change: greater housing supply at affordable price points, continued product innovation from lenders, and a rental market that offers more security to those saving to buy. She also singles out financial education as a gap that needs addressing earlier.
"Young people should leave school or college understanding how a mortgage works, what affects their credit history and what they can start doing now if they hope to own a home one day," she said.
Niziol acknowledges that first-time ownership at 18 is unlikely to become the norm again, but maintains that the opportunity has not disappeared entirely. "The market has changed enormously since I bought my first home, but the opportunity hasn't disappeared," she said.
"Our job now is to help more young people see where their own route into homeownership might begin."
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