Middle East Conflict Prompts Brits To Rethink Housing Plans

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Barclays Property Insights reveals that global and economic uncertainty is impacting how UK homeowners are managing their household finances. Almost one in five UK adults (17 per cent) say their housing plans have been affected by the conflict in the Middle East, with many taking action to protect against interest rate and cost‑of‑living pressures.

To safeguard against future rate rises, over a quarter of homeowners (27 per cent) say they are overpaying on their mortgage, and a fifth (20 per cent) of those remortgaging are looking to lock in a new rate as soon as possible in case of future volatility.

Early signs of this behaviour appear in Barclays’ mortgage data from March, which shows that the share of customers borrowing for a remortgage – compared to other reasons for borrowing, such as a first-time purchase or a home move – rose 9 percentage points year-on-year1.

However, it’s important to note that most of the remortgages completed were initiated prior to the escalation of the conflict in Iran, so this increase is more likely driven by the high numbers of people in the UK rolling off five-year fixed rates taken out during the low-interest rate environment in 2021.

Movers adapt to macroeconomic conditions

Existing homeowners cited a number of factors which could delay or prevent their next move. The top barrier was economic uncertainty, with three in 10 (29 per cent) saying this could change their plans. Other factors include stamp duty (27 per cent), moving fees (28 per cent), mortgage rates (24 per cent), and the price gap between their current home and available properties (24 per cent). Nearly half of adults in work (45 per cent) say their wages are not keeping pace with rising costs, so many may find it harder to take the next step up the ladder.

Facing these barriers, Barclays Mortgage data shows that existing homeowners increasingly gravitate towards cheaper properties and larger mortgages. The proportion of home purchases below £500,000 rose to 73.2 per cent year‑on‑year (up from 70.5 per cent in March 2025), while the share of next-time buyers putting down a deposit of less than £20,000 increased to 56.7 per cent from 43.2 per cent over the same period.

Second‑steppers face the largest financial leap on the housing ladder

Two-in five (41 per cent) UK homeowners say they are living in the first property they’ve ever owned, but moving up to the next rung of the property ladder can be challenging.

First-time owners looking to move to their next home – also known as ‘second-steppers’ – estimate needing to save an average of £75,648 to fund the purchase, on top of any proceeds from the sale of their current home. That figure breaks down into £41,751 for a deposit, £28,112 in stamp duty, and £5,785 in third‑party costs such as legal fees.

In contrast, third‑steppers and beyond – i.e. homeowners buying their third or subsequent primary residence – estimate needing to save just £52,651 on average. This includes £19,835 for a deposit, £26,860 for stamp duty, and £5,996 in third‑party costs.

That is £22,998 less than second‑steppers, reflecting the greater equity this group has typically built up in their current home. Over two in five (43 per cent) of those further along the property ladder say they would not need to save anything for a deposit at all.

Jatin Patel, Head of Mortgages, Savings and Insurance at Barclays, said:

“Periods of geopolitical and economic uncertainty inevitably place greater focus on household finances, and we’re seeing homeowners and potential buyers respond in pragmatic ways. Borrowers are demonstrating resilience by overpaying where they can, reassessing their mortgage options, and thinking carefully about timing to maintain flexibility and control."

“For those moving from their first to their second primary residence, the challenge is more structural. Buyers at this stage often face the widest gap between properties, while still needing to fund deposits, stamp duty and moving costs largely from savings rather than equity alone. That makes second‑steppers particularly sensitive to economic pressures, even as they take considered steps to keep their housing plans on track.”

Barclays has solutions for homeowners at every stage of the property ladder, from Mortgage Boost for first-time buyers, or additional borrowing if customers need to fund a large purchase, renovation, or to consolidate debt. Find out more here.

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Jul 16, 2024
3 min read

A Leicestershire based flooring specialist has helped Leicestershire County Cricket Club score the eco-deal of the century after boosting its sustainability credentials in a cricketing first.

With the help of innovative resin floor manufacturer Abacus Flooring Solutions, the Cricket Club has turned waste plastics into brand new and stylish resin flooring in three areas of the club at the Uptonsteel County Ground Grace Road.

Abacus Flooring Solutions, which has its head office in Loughborough, Leicestershire, made history by becoming the first company in the world to use waste plastic as a substitute bulking material in its industry-leading resin flooring instead of the traditional silica sand.

It first used its patented invention in JCB’s global headquarters in Staffordshire, and was approached by Sean Jarvis, CEO of the Leicestershire County Cricket Club to create eco-friendly flooring solutions in the Grace Road Community Space Hub, the Friends of Grace Road Cafe and a section of the stadium.

The move means that the cricket club is not only solidly achieving its sustainability goals, but it is also the first cricket venue in the UK to roll out the ground-breaking eco flooring solution, beating neighbouring cricket venue Trent Bridge and UK ‘home of cricket’, Lord’s.

Nick Megson, managing director of Abacus Flooring Solutions, said:

“We are already official partners of the club, so it has been an absolute pleasure to assist them in reaching their sustainability goals.”

Two of the areas of the club benefiting from the make-over are in Friends of Grace Road maintained sections of the ground.

The fund-raising organisation is run by a voluntary team who are passionate about the club. All profits from the cafe, alongside their fundraising efforts, are reinvested into the club and into refurbishments at Uptonsteel County Ground.

Sean Jarvis, CEO of the Leicestershire County Cricket Club, said:

“We are extremely proud to say that we are the first cricket club in the UK to get involved in such a project."

“We are a green club and are constantly embracing ways to push the club forward in an environmentally sound way. Turning old plastics into usable materials is an excellent initiative and offsets our eco efficiency targets in terms of our sustainable waste policy.”

The work, which was carried out during March and April this year in time for the

season, included creating grey flooring in the Abacus Flooring Solutions sponsored section of the stand.

Sean said: “As we continue to develop the club, we will be replacing some of the

seats and if suitable, will be using the plastics from the old seats to create more new flooring within the ground.”

While Abacus Flooring Solutions has already carried out other resin flooring

installations at major football clubs such as Wembley Stadium, Manchester’s Etihad Stadium and King Power Stadium Leicester, this is the first cricket ground that the firm has worked with, ensuring that Leicester has beaten Trent Bridge and even Lord’s to the eco first.

Nick Megson, who set up Abacus Flooring Solutions with his wife Amanda during lockdown four years ago, added: “It is immensely important to us that we tackle plastic waste in a sustainable manner.

“We are so impressed by Leicestershire County Cricket Club’s environmental policy and the work that the club and the volunteers of Friends of Grace Road carry out. It has been a pleasure not only to work with these teams but also to provide the new sustainable surfaces at the ground.”

Nick, who has worked in the resin flooring sector for more than three decades, said that the ground-breaking process involved grinding the waste plastic down to a powder reducing the plastic to a colourless dust, enabling Abacus Flooring Solutions to precisely match the final resin flooring to any colour.

Abacus Flooring Solutions’ multi award-winning advancement not only changes the course of resin flooring production and vastly reduce the volume of plastic ending up in landfill or the world’s oceans, but it also removes silica sand – a dangerous substance when inhaled - from the entire process.

The discovery could also transform many other industrial processes which have

traditionally relied on silica sand as a ballast material.

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