Northern Enterprise Awards 2019

10 | Northern Enterprise Awards 2019 Getting onto the property market has never been easy for first-time buyers, with lots of young people choosing instead to rent before they settle down in their first house. However, according to a new report from KIS Finance in conjunction with The Leadership Factor, 23.5% of Brits have to rely on financial support from parents or other family members to fund the deposit alone. Alongside the financial struggle, the survey also reports on how much longer some Brits are having to wait until they can buy a house. The average first-time buyer age is around 34 years of age, but some report having to wait much longer, according to the ONS. Just shy of 45% of 35-44-year-olds express a desire to purchase a house, but haven’t been able to yet, and 17% of that group will end up relying on family support to get there. Going up another age bracket, 28.3% of 45-54-year-olds still have not yet been able to buy their first property, and 7.6% of that group will also seek to rely on family in getting them there. According to a separate report by Legal & General, property lending by relatives has risen to £6.3bn collectively, seeing a 10% increase on last years figures. The average figure per family is around £24,000, with the figure rising to just £31,000 in the nation’s capital. Whilst this may give hope to some prospective first-time buyers, the report doesn’t make pretty reading for Mum and Dad. Legal & General’s report goes on to show that a quarter of those surveyed were no longer confident of having enough money to last in retirement, with 15% saying they have had to accept a lower standard of living, and 6% are working longer. So, why is this? The short answer is that housing has become less affordable; people get stuck in the rental system, and it’s not just about saving for the deposit. Alongside the deposit, houses also require furnishings, insurance and repairs and that can add extra costs to the already hefty amount that needs saving, let alone getting approved for a mortgage. Across the country, house prices are nearly eight times higher than the average UK salary, not accounting for the huge regional variations. Since 1997, that figure has steadily increased from being three and half times higher. Seeking greater clarity, KIS Finance conducted a further survey to understand why people were being turned down for a mortgage. During this survey, it was revealed that 46.6% were told that their income was too low, with 34.1% of those surveyed being unable to prove sufficient income due to their being self-employed or contract workers. Other factors included adverse credit history, lack of employment security, too many existing debts, deposit was too small, or they had taken out a payday loan in the past. Somewhat unsurprisingly, the largest group represented in the survey was 18-24-year-olds, with 62.5% citing these reasons as being why their mortgage application was turned down. However, slightly more surprisingly, the second largest group was the 55-64-year-olds, where a staggering 57.1% were declined a mortgage due to income-related issues. Clearly, not just a young person issue. For those looking to get on to the property ladder, it can be disheartening to know that these reasons are the primary issues for having a mortgage turned down. Job security and financial stability are more important than ever, especially with the effects of Brexit being inevitably felt for years to come. The reports from KIS Finance and Legal & General do little to alleviate these fears, but they are a realistic representation of where first-time buyers often find themselves in an increasingly unsettled socio-political and economic climate across the United Kingdom, and beyond. Expanding Manchester Consulting Firm McBains Re-Locates To New City Centre Base Leading construction consulting and design agency McBains has moved into new premises in Manchester city centre as it expands the scale of its work in the North West. The company has re-located from Spinningfields to Piccadilly to accommodate its projects and expanding workforce of nearly 20 staff, providing consultancy services in the North West region. Additional staff are currently being sought to join the growing team of Quantity and Building Surveyors, Project Monitors and Engineers. McBains offers project management, building surveying, quantity surveying and monitoring services with full design services via the wider business, including its London office. Projects that McBains has worked on in the North West include regional office restructuring and fitouts for RBS; major projects for BAE at Barrow in Furness including a new training centre for 5,000 apprentices; Britvic Drink production facilities; and project monitoring on residential projects, care homes, offices and industrial projects. The company has recently been appointed by the Department of Work and Pensions to fit out nine Job Centres. The office will be headed by new director Ian Bayman. Ian joins McBains having recently worked as a partner within a consultancy environment for the last 12 years, where he managed the delivery of both cost and project management services across various sectors in the UK, Central Europe and the Middle East including major hotels, commercial offices, schools, industrial facilities and residential projects. Projects in the North West that Ian has managed include project and cost management services for Wigan Infirmary, cost consultancy services to HM Customs & Excise in Liverpool, a national bank’s regional office building and a new mainline station, in addition to the management of various residential projects across the region. Ian Bayman, Director, comments on this exciting new development. “I am delighted to be joining McBains, a growing company making its mark in the North West area. The office move reflects our drive and growth in the Manchester market, and with this being an exciting time for the region’s development, the new premises offer a perfect location to continue to offer quality services to clients.”