In 2025, first-time buyers accounted for more than half (52.8%) of all mortgage sales in the UK, a significant increase from around a third (33.8%) in 2006, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The data shows that first-time buyers are taking on larger mortgages relative to the value of the homes they purchase, as the median loan-to-value (LTV) ratio—measuring how much of a property’s value is covered by a mortgage—rose from 85.0% in 2024 to 85.6% in 2025. This is the highest level since before the 2008 financial crisis, indicating a return to more leveraged home purchases. Regional differences are notable, with first-time buyers in the North East of England having the highest LTV ratio at 89.8%, followed closely by Scotland (89.7%) and Wales (88.9%). In contrast, London saw a much lower LTV ratio of 80.2%, nearly 10 percentage points lower than the highest regions. This difference is largely due to London’s higher property prices, which require larger deposits from buyers. The average mortgage loan in 2025 was 3.5 times the borrower’s income, slightly up from 3.3 times in 2024. For first-time buyers specifically, the ratio rose from 3.5 to 3.6. These figures remain below the peak levels seen in 2022, suggesting that while mortgage amounts have increased, they are still not at their highest levels in recent years. Ian Futcher, a financial planner at Quilter, noted that first-time buyers are increasingly "stretching further" to purchase homes, with the median LTV ratio reaching 85.6% in 2025. While demand for homeownership remains strong, many are likely to be cautious about large financial commitments due to ongoing uncertainty about interest rates and the economic outlook for 2026. Meanwhile, the average five-year fixed-rate mortgage has reached its highest level since October 2023, hitting 5.88% on Friday, up from 5.87% the previous day. The Bank of England kept its base rate at 3.75% on Thursday, but many lenders have raised fixed mortgage rates recently, influenced by rising swap rates, which are used to price mortgages.