House prices across Blackpool said to be 'affordable'

Only 56 per cent of areas have house prices which are typically affordable for people taking their first step on the property ladder, according to Post Office Money.

Homes were deemed affordable if they cost less than four and a half times typical local first-time buyer incomes, according to the report, which used Office for National Statistics data.

Areas in more than 80 locations across the country were analysed.

Blackpool, Lincoln and Hull topped the list of first-time buyer hotspots where properties were particularly affordable.

The report found that 100 per cent of areas within these locations had average house prices which were affordable.

The historic cities of Oxford, Cambridge and York were among the first-time buyer coldspots – with no areas where average house prices were deemed affordable for people taking their first step on the property ladder.

In London, where wages are often higher than elsewhere in the UK, 19 per cent of areas were still found to be affordable for local buyers, despite the capital’s relatively high house prices compared with the rest of the country.

In Cardiff, just under a third (31 per cent) of areas were deemed affordable for first-time buyers, while in nearby Newport in South Wales the proportion was 65 per cent.

In Newcastle-upon-Tyne 69 per cent of areas were deemed affordable, as were 72 per cent in Plymouth.

In both Leeds and Worcester, half (50 per cent) of areas were found to be affordable for first-time buyers.

Ross Hunter, product director, Post Office Money said: “While we have seen house price growth slow in the last year, properties can still seem particularly unaffordable for first-time buyers.

“We know that saving for a deposit remains the most significant hurdle for young buyers to overcome in order to achieve their home ownership aspirations.”