More than half of recent homebuyers aged 25-34 believe they will go into negative equity, new research suggests.

A survey of 1,000 homeowners who have bought within the past five years commissioned by Boon Brokers found that 56% of those in the 25-34 age bracket felt it was likely they would go into negative equity at some point during their mortgage term.

Meanwhile, across all age groups, 91% of recent homebuyers are concerned that the equity in their property could reduce.

Within this, 47% were either “very” or “extremely concerned”, while only 9% had no concerns at all.

When asked to identify their single biggest concern about the current housing market, 33% of recent homebuyers selected higher mortgage repayments, making it the most common response.

Negative equity ranked second at 24%, followed by falling property values for 14%, being unable to remortgage for 11% and difficulty selling a property for 9%.

Boon Brokers managing director Gerard Boon says: “These findings outline that younger homebuyers today are thinking far beyond simply getting onto the property ladder.

“One of the biggest shifts we’ve seen in recent years is the return of low-deposit and higher loan-to-value mortgage products.

“While these products open the door to many younger buyers, they have also made housing equity a much more important consideration from day one.

“With less equity to absorb any change in property values, it is understandable that concerns around negative equity have become more prominent.

“Our research indicates that today’s borrowers are no longer just thinking about buying a home, but how resilient that investment will be if market conditions change.”