First-time buyers are viewed as the most promising segment of the UK property market for 2025, according to a new poll conducted by Countrywide Surveying Services (CSS) during its latest industry webinar.
The event, which drew over 250 professionals from across the housing and mortgage sectors, highlighted cautious optimism for the year ahead, tempered by ongoing concerns over affordability and the delivery of new homes.
The webinar poll revealed that 50% of participants felt most confident about the first-time buyer sector, outstripping confidence in new build (18%), later life lending (13%), buy-to-let (3%), and lending to foreign nationals and expats (2%). However, 14% of respondents selected ‘none’, reflecting lingering uncertainty across parts of the market.
More broadly, sentiment towards the housing and mortgage outlook for 2025 was relatively upbeat, with 54% expressing confidence. Another 37% remained neutral, while just 9% described themselves as not confident.
When asked what issues were most pressing for supporting market growth, affordability was ranked as the leading concern by 38% of respondents. The need to reduce interest rates followed at 30%, while 11% called for a replacement for Help to Buy. Stamp duty reform and greater support for landlords each received 9%, with 3% pointing to a need for further development in later life lending.
Despite pockets of optimism, there was widespread scepticism over the government’s ability to meet its own housing delivery goals. In a stark reflection of industry sentiment, 74% of those polled said they did not believe the government would meet its targets for affordable housing and new build completions in 2025. Only 26% felt otherwise, underlining longstanding frustrations with planning delays and policy inertia.
The session featured a panel of senior industry figures, including Terry Higgins, group managing director at New Build Mortgage Services; Aneisha Beveridge, head of research at Hamptons; Martyn Stones, director of technical services at Countrywide Surveying Services; and Rob Stevens, head of property risk at Nationwide Building Society. The webinar was hosted by Matthew Cumber, managing director at Countrywide Surveying Services.
Reflecting on the discussion, Cumber said: “These insights paint a picture of a market that is still navigating economic pressures and grappling with fundamental issues but is starting to see signs of stabilisation and resilience. It’s encouraging to see such strong confidence emerging towards first-time buyers and new build, but the message from the industry is clear in that affordability and housing supply must be prioritised if we want to see sustainable growth.
“Our role is to continue supporting informed decisions and facilitating honest conversations across the sector, and we’re proud that our webinar series is helping to lead that dialogue and shape the right conversations across the industry.”
