The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Dundee is revealed as seventh cheapest city for first-home buyers
Dundee is the seventh least expensive city to get on the property ladder in the UK, analysis suggests.
Rightmove found that the average asking price for a first-time buyer-type property with two bedrooms or fewer in Dundee is £116,191.
Assuming a 20% deposit, a typical first-time buyer in the city would pay around £460 per month in mortgage costs, Rightmove calculated.
Aberdeen has been identified as the least expensive city to get on the property ladder while Carlisle is the cheapest for renters.
Rightmove found that the average asking price for a first-time buyer-type property with two bedrooms or fewer in Aberdeen is £102,601.
A typical first-time buyer in Aberdeen could pay around £406 per month in mortgage costs, Rightmove calculated.
The average advertised rent in Carlisle meanwhile is £607 per month, the website found.
With a cathedral and pubs that are steeped in history and its commuter links to London, St Albans in Hertfordshire was named by Rightmove as the most expensive city to be a first-time buyer outside London, followed by Cambridge and Winchester.
Oxford was identified as the most expensive city outside London to rent.
The research looked at more than 50 cities across Britain. It made certain assumptions about mortgage costs, including that first-time buyers in Scotland and Wales had a 20% deposit and were taking out a five-year fixedrate mortgage at average rates.
It also assumed that firsttime buyers in England had a slightly higher deposit, at 25%, reflecting industry averages for deposit sizes, and were taking out a fiveyear mortgage.
After Aberdeen, Bradford was found to be the next cheapest city to be a firsttime buyer, with an average asking price of £107,929, with Sunderland placed third, with an average price tag of £111,263.
The cost of renting a twobedroom or smaller home has increased by 39% in the past five years, compared with a 19% jump in the cost of buying a two-bedroom or smaller home, Rightmove said.
Rightmove’s property expert Tim Bannister said: “These latest figures highlight why so many people remain determined to get on to the ladder, as the soaring costs of renting has meant buying has remained attractive even with higher mortgage rates.
“Longer mortgage terms are becoming more common as a way to improve overall affordability and reduce monthly payments, though first-time buyers should be aware of what they are paying in interest compared with their actual mortgage.”
Here are the 10 cheapest cities to get on the property ladder according to Rightmove, with the average asking price for a typical first-time buyer home and the typical monthly mortgage payment, assuming a 35year mortgage term:
1. Aberdeen, £102,601, £406
2. Bradford, £107,929,
£400
3. Sunderland, £111,263, £413
4. Carlisle, £111,268, £413
5. Preston, £112,273, £416
6. Hull, £113,920, £423
7. Dundee, £116,191, £460
8. Stoke-on-trent, £117,113, £434
9. Durham, £125,957,
£467
10. Doncaster, £128,062, £475