First-time buyers are the most promising force in the UK housing market for 2025, according to a new industry poll by Countrywide Surveying Services (CSS).
Despite lingering concerns over affordability, interest rates, and housing delivery, half of property professionals surveyed said they were most confident in the FTB segment to drive market activity this year.
The findings, gathered from a live audience of more than 250 brokers, developers, surveyors and lenders during CSS’s latest quarterly webinar, paint a picture of cautious optimism tempered by structural frustrations.
While 54% of respondents expressed confidence in the overall housing and mortgage market outlook for 2025, nearly four in ten remained uncertain, and 9% reported having no confidence at all.
MIXED FEELINGS
Aside from the FTB sector, confidence trailed off significantly: just 18% of respondents identified the new build market as promising, followed by 13% for later life lending.
Buy-to-let and foreign national lending barely registered, with 3% and 2% respectively, and a telling 14% said they were confident in none of the core lending segments – highlighting the uneven sentiment across the market.
Affordability emerged as the industry’s most urgent challenge, cited by 38% of attendees as the top priority for unlocking housing growth.
A further 30% pointed to the need for further interest rate cuts, while 11% called for a replacement to the now-defunct Help to Buy scheme.
Stamp duty reform and greater landlord support also featured, although both drew only 9% of the vote, suggesting a clear prioritisation of buyer access and cost-of-living pressures.
PROMISES BROKEN
Perhaps most damning was the overwhelming scepticism around government promises to boost housing supply.
When asked whether Westminster would meet its targets for affordable housing and new build delivery in 2025, a staggering 74% of professionals said no – underlining widespread frustration with planning bottlenecks, policy drift, and unmet infrastructure pledges.
STALLING OPTIMISM
Matthew Cumber, Managing Director at Countrywide Surveying Services, says: “This poll reflects a market still navigating inflationary pressures but beginning to stabilise.
“There’s a clear sense that first-time buyers are leading the charge, but unless affordability and housing delivery are addressed, that optimism could stall.”
The session featured a high-profile panel including Aneisha Beveridge, Head of Research at Hamptons, Terry Higgins of New Build Mortgage Services and Rob Stevens, Head of Property Risk at Nationwide.
Cumber adds: “Our mission is to enable informed conversations—and this kind of direct feedback is essential if we’re to support a more resilient and equitable housing market.”
