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https://www.thetimes.com/money/mortgages/article/the-rise-of-the-mortgage-free-first-time-buyer-6vhbrzmpj?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Reddit&utm_content=branded

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One in ten first-time buyers are buying homes outright with cash.

The estate agency Hamptons said that those who did not need a mortgage made up 10 per cent of first-home buyers between January 1 and May 13 this year — up from 8.2 per cent in the same period of 2023.

The estate agency Savills said that gifts and loans from the Bank of Mum and Dad totalled £9.6 billion in 2024, which would make it the UK’s seventh-largest mortgage lender.

Emma Fildes, who runs the property buying agency Brickweaver, said: “Many first-time buyers, fortunate enough to have help from the Bank of Mum and Dad, are capitalising on price falls. Being chain-free and cash-only gives them a massive advantage over potential borrowers even if their offer may be slightly lower. 

“This year, several of my clients were first-time buyers who, aided by parental funds, bought properties with cash in north and south London. Both opted to buy houses to avoid paying stamp duty again within a few years if they needed to scale up.”

Charlotte Mantle from Strutt & Parker estate agents said: “I’ve been helping a young man in his early 20s with his house search in Chelsea. While he’s living in a house share in south London after university, his parents are gifting him a budget of over £3 million for a three to four-bedroom house with a garden.

“The caveat is that the parents are really driving the search; they’re attending every viewing, have the power of veto, and are likely to make the final decision.”

Mortgage rates have risen since the war in Iran began at the end of February. It has pushed up oil prices, raising fears of higher inflation, which drives banks to raise rates. The average two-year fixed rate has gone up 0.91 percentage points to 5.75 per cent, according to the financial data firm Moneyfacts.

The 11th fairway of the Garrison Golf Club in the Hudson Valley is now a beauty spot dedicated to the Bard — all thanks to a wealthy benefactor

Video of a distressed deer staggering in circles has been issued by a Burgundy police force to alert drivers to animals under the influence of naturally-occurring alcohol.

The gendarmerie of the Saône-et-Loire department, in the heart of the winemaking region, reminded drivers of the seasonal problem in France of disoriented roe deer wandering down country roads after eating fermenting fruit and nuts.

“If Bambi is overdoing the forest apéritif, it might not be the moment to drive as if the road belongs entirely to you,” the gendarmerie said.