Housing supply remains a fundamental constraint on affordability. Planning approvals for new homes in England fell by a fifth in the latest quarter to 45,315 homes, the lowest level since 2012. Meanwhile, analysis cited by Coventry Building Society suggests that the average first-time-buyer property could cost nearly £24,000 more by 2030, with the deposit requirement also increasing.
For financial advisers, the immediate priority is to distinguish between a softer near-term market and the longer-term affordability challenge created by limited supply. Cashflow planning, deposit strategies, family support and protection planning will remain central to first-time-buyer advice. AI forecasting tools can help illustrate different savings, price-growth and borrowing scenarios, but outputs are illustrations rather than predictions; assumptions should be transparent and clients should understand the limits of any model.