First-time buyer numbers highest in 12 years

The number of first time buyers has recorded a 22 percent annual increase on 2012 - the largest level of growth since 2001.

The Halifax First Time Buyer Review said there were some 265,000 first-time buyers in 2013, up from 218,000 in two years.

However, the number is still almost 30 per cent lower than between 2003 and 2007, when there was an average of 370,800 new property owners each year.

The average deposit required has, however, massively increased - shooting up to £30,943 last year.

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