According to new research, the time it takes a single first-time buyer to save for a 15 per cent deposit in England and Wales has fallen.
The research carried out by Hamptons International, found that the amount fell to 10 years and three months, a figure six months earlier than two years ago.
This means, means that if a single first-time buyer started saving now, it would take them until the beginning of 2029 to be able to afford a home.
The figures shortened in all regions across the UK, except for the North East and North West where the time stayed the same.
A single first-time buyer in London, however, would need 15 years and nine months to save, down from 16 years two years ago as house price growth has slowed and incomes have risen. This means that it would now take until around the third quarter of 2034 for a single first-time buyer to save for a home in the capital.
The research also found it was three months quicker on average for a full time working couple in England and Wales to save for a home in 2018 than it was in 2016.
The average couple would need to save for four years and nine months to raise a 15 per cent deposit on their first home, half the time it takes a single person. Measures such as sharing rent and everyday household costs such as food and bills mean that a couple can save faster.
In the capital, it was three months quicker for a couple to save for a home in 2018 than it was two years ago and the average couple would have to save up until the middle of 2026 to purchase their first home in London, taking seven years and six months on average.
Aneisha Beveridge, head of research at Hamptons International said: “Saving a deposit is still the biggest barrier to buying a home, but things did improve in 2018. Slowing house price growth, which is expected to continue, combined with rising wages, meant that last year it was six months quicker to save for a home than it was two years earlier.
“However, despite the slight improvement in affordability it still takes single people more than a decade to save up to buy a home. Conditions are hardest in the capital where house prices have increased the most over the last decade.”
