Number of 1st-time buyers on the increase

The average first-time buyer in the UK is 30 years old with a household income of £42,000 and borrowing £143,499 to get on the property ladder.

Figures from UK Finance, the trade body for the industry, show that 32,900 first-time buyer mortgages were completed in October, with newcomers to home ownership borrowing a total of £5.5 billion.

The number of completed mortgages was up 8.2 percent on the same month a year ago with the amount of borrowing also up by 12.2 percent year on year.

According to the data, first-time buyers are borrowing 3.6 times their income to buy a home and spending 17.4 percent of their gross household income on mortgage repayments.

The average loan-to-value of a mortgage is 85 percent, meaning a first-time buyer must have a minimum 15 percent deposit.

Jackie Bennett, director of mortgages at UK Finance, said: "There has been relatively strong growth in the number of first-time buyers, with schemes such as Help to Buy providing vital support to those getting a foot on the housing ladder."