Homebuyers' debt at highest level since 2016

Homebuyers are taking on more mortgage debt as house prices soar. Mazars, a tax firm, found that 12.6% of property loans taken out in the first quarter of the year were by homebuyers borrowing at least four times their income. This was up from 11.4% last year and was the highest since 2016. The proportion of buyers borrowing less than two and a half times their income has dropped from 8.5 to 6.5% over the past five years. "Some borrowers may have overextended themselves," said Paul Rouse, from Mazars. "If the exit from the lockdown is bumpier than expected, this could lead to significant job losses [and] higher levels of personal insolvency." 

The Times (07/08/2021)