Young buyers are looking to TikTok, YouTube and podcasts to learn about mortgages after new research found almost 80% of first-time buyers believe school left them unprepared for buying a home.
A survey of 1,000 first-time buyers by online mortgage broker Mojo Mortgages found that 79% felt the UK education system did not equip them with the knowledge needed to understand mortgages, interest rates and the realities of home ownership.
The youngest buyers felt the least prepared. More than eight in 10 (86%) respondents aged 18 to 24 said school had left them ill-equipped for buying a home, while almost half (49%) strongly agreed the education system had failed them. Women were also more likely than men to strongly agree they lacked adequate education around home buying, at 45% compared with 37%.
As more young people try to fill those knowledge gaps themselves, social media has become an increasingly popular place to learn the basics. A recent study analysing more than 13,000 videos from 71 UK-based financial influencers found property investing, saving and budgeting were among the most common topics shared by finance creators on TikTok.
For Alice Le, 29, a healthcare worker, that meant teaching herself online.
She said: “I’ve probably learned more about buying a home from YouTube videos. I spent hours Googling basic questions because I was worried about making an expensive mistake.
“Social media can be incredibly useful, but it shouldn’t be your primary teacher for something that could affect your finances for the next 25 or 30 years.
“It wouldn’t make homes any cheaper, but it would make one of the most stressful experiences of adult life feel far less daunting.”
Kayleigh Jackson, mortgage sales manager at Mojo Mortgages, said: “Financial literacy shouldn’t be learned through trial and error when you’re already in the middle of house hunting.”
The sentiment was even more pronounced outside of London, with first-time buyers in Wales, the South West of England and Scotland among those most likely to say the education system left them unprepared for the realities of mortgages, interest rates and home ownership. At a city level, respondents in Plymouth, Liverpool and Edinburgh were the most likely to share this view, suggesting the demand for practical financial education extends well beyond the capital.
Mortgage experts, however, warn that while social media can be a useful starting point, it should not replace regulated financial advice.
Sarah Grace, director and mortgage adviser at Sarah Grace Mortgages, said: “Lenders are constantly changing their criteria, sometimes every week, and staying up to date takes years of experience.
“Just because someone has passed a mortgage exam doesn’t mean they’re equipped to give sound advice, especially not in a quick social media clip. Advising well takes real experience helping people through complex situations.
“I’d always encourage first-time buyers to use social media to build their confidence, but when it comes to making decisions that could affect your finances for decades, it’s important to speak to someone who understands your circumstances, not just someone who’s good at talking about them online.”
Featured image credit: Tierra Mallorca via Unsplash
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