The latest research from Yopa has revealed that first-time buyer demand eased during the third quarter of 2026, with demand falling slightly across Great Britain as a whole. While PM Andy Burnham’s announcement to bring back Help to Buy could help boost first-time buyer demand, Yopa’s research highlights that this only addresses part of the problem. First-time buyer suitable homes currently account for just 1.8% of current for sale stock.
Yopa analysed first-time buyer demand based on the proportion of homes listed under buying schemes that have already sold subject to contract as a percentage of total available stock and how this compares to both the previous quarter and the same period last year. The research also looked at the proportion of total homes currently listed for sale that are suitable for first-time buyers. Data covers Q3 2026 and compares market performance versus Q2 2026 and Q3 2025.
The research shows that across Great Britain as a whole, 31.7% of first-time buyer suitable homes had found a buyer in Q3 2026, down from 32.9% in Q2 2026, a quarterly decline of 1.3 percentage points. Demand was also broadly unchanged on an annual basis, sitting just 0.6 percentage points below the level recorded in Q3 2025.
Regional demand remains strong
Leicester has seen the largest quarterly increase in first-time buyer demand. The proportion of suitable homes sold subject to contract climbing from 37.5% in Q2 to 44.6% in Q3, an increase of 7.1 percentage points.
Whilst demand has softened nationally, the supply of first-time buyer suitable homes remains limited. Across Great Britain as a whole, such properties account for 1.8% of all homes currently listed for sale. This is up slightly from 1.7% in Q2 2026 but unchanged from the same period last year.
Several markets saw an increase in the availability of first-time buyer suitable homes versus the previous quarter, including Newcastle, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Edinburgh, Southampton, Liverpool, and Bristol. However, in many areas supply either remained unchanged or declined. This highlights the continued shortage of suitable stock available to those looking to purchase their first home.
Increasing supply remains essential
Verona Frankish, CEO of Yopa, commented, “While we’ve seen first-time buyer demand ease slightly at a national level during the third quarter, the underlying picture remains mixed, with a number of regional markets continuing to demonstrate strong levels of buyer activity.
The fact that demand remains strong in cities such as Liverpool, Sheffield, Leicester and Manchester demonstrates that many first-time buyers are still actively looking to enter the market when the right opportunities are available. At the same time, the significant variation between markets highlights that the experience of first-time buyers continues to differ considerably depending on where they are looking.
However, one of the biggest challenges continues to be the lack of suitable stock. Across Britain, first-time buyer homes account for only a very small proportion of all properties available for sale. While there has been a slight improvement in availability this quarter, increasing the supply of suitable homes remains essential if we want to improve accessibility and maintain market momentum over the longer term.
The Government’s proposed new first-time buyer scheme could certainly help to reduce the upfront deposit barrier for some buyers, but there is also a risk that stimulating demand specifically within the new-build market could artificially inflate prices. If that happens, some first-time buyers could find themselves more exposed to negative equity further down the line, particularly if those price gains prove difficult to sustain.”
