Owning a home can provide a saving of over £2k annually in comparison to renting, according to a recent review.

According to the latest Bank of Scotland Owning vs Renting review, it costs Scottish renters 21% more than first-time buyers in Scotland to live in a comparative property.

Based on a three-bed home, renters pay £918 per month while owners sit at £727 per month. This means that homeowners are over £2000 better off annually than renters.

RENTAL CAP MAKES LITTLE DIFFERENCE

Since 2012, rental costs have increased monthly by 64%.

The Scottish Government introduced a rent cap in autumn 2022 which remains in place, but a lack of supply relative to demand has put pressure on the cost of renting property in Scotland, meaning that the nation has the biggest gap proportionately between owning and renting costs of anywhere in the UK.

The average deposit for Scottish first-time buyers fell marginally at the start of the year, compared to the same point in 2022, at £33,288.

Graham Blair, Mortgages Director at Bank of Scotland, said: “Renting costs went up by almost a third in 2022, compared to the year before.

This means there’s still a lot of pressure on first-time buyers, many of whom will be trying to balance high rental costs with raising the average [amount] needed for a house deposit.”