The Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association (IMLA) is supporting calls from the Building Societies Association (BSA) for the Government to introduce reforms to assist first-time buyers and address the UK’s housing crisis.

The trade body also believes that buy-to-let (BTL) landlords need encouragement from the Government to ensure the sustainability of the private rented sector.

Amid the cost of living crisis, record high rents making it harder for first-time buyers to save required deposits, and higher interest rates curbing mortgage affordability, the number of people owning their own home in the UK has been in steady decline for several years.

A report recently published by the BSA, which called for radical change to fix the “broken” housing market, suggested that the ability to become a first-time buyer is increasingly dependent on the Bank of Mum and Dad, while successful first-time buyers increasingly need to have two incomes that are higher than the average.

IMLA has now backed the BSA’s calls for the Government to implement an independent review of the first-time buyer sector, to assess how policy and regulatory changes could help more buyers into homeownership.

The organisation suggested that solutions could include the revival of a Government scheme to support aspiring homeowners, which it said could be along the lines of the Help to Buy scheme.

IMLA executive director, Kate Davies, said: “The UK is an advanced economy which is home to one of the most diverse, competitive and innovative mortgage industries in the world. And yet we are in the midst of a housing crisis, with fewer affording to buy a home, and more renters struggling to secure accommodation.

“There is a viable argument for Government-backed first-time buyer support, which must be accompanied by a sustainable plan to deliver more quality, affordable housing on a major scale, in both the private and social sectors.”

Davies added: “IMLA believes that Government needs to acknowledge the crucial role BTL landlords play in the private rented sector which provides homes for almost 20% of the UK’s households.

“We believe landlords deserve more support, rather than a punitive tax and regulatory regime which threatens to push many out of existence, exacerbating the shortage of rental properties available and pushing up the cost of rent for the remainder.”

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