WITH economists predicting rises in interest rates during the second half of the year, is now the time for everyone renting to jump onto the property ladder?

According to Mann Countrywide, as we come into the second half of the year, many estate agents are reporting a shortage of lower priced properties. This is resulting in some purchasers having to expand their target location to include a wider range of property. To combat this many lenders have increased their income multiples to reflect the current low mortgage rate environment.

One bank, will lend up to 4.2 times a single income for borrowers with a 10 per cent deposit, another a standard four times income up to 95 per cent of the property value.

Abbey National recently reported that homebuyers are likely to be more than £100,000 better off than people who rent over the lifetime of a typical 25 year mortgage.

The research found that the average rent on a two-bedroom flat is £528 per month, and over 25 years and with four per cent inflation, this would cost £263,785. However, to buy the same property would cost only £426 per month, with a mortgage rate of six per cent.