According to a latest report detailed in Money.co.uk first-time buyers need to earn almost £41,000 to afford a home in the UK, while those in London would need to be on £77,000.

Homes are unaffordable for first-time buyers in every single one of the UK’s regions, the study by KPMG shows.

Its economists mapped the average house price for first-time buyers in each of the regions and worked out the required average salary in that area to secure a mortgage with a 10 per cent deposit. In every one the current median average annual wage for potential homeowners fell short of that figure.

Across the UK, the average annual house price for first-time buyers is £202,765, according to ONS figures.

To buy this property with a mortgage at 4.5 times salary, a purchaser would need to earn £40,533.

The current media annual wage for first-time buyers across the UK is just over half that figure, at £22,044.

The gulf was greatest in London where a prospective homeowner would need to earn £76,971 to afford the £384,856 average first-time buyer property. The median annual wage for a first-time buyer in the capital was £28,000, however.

The gap was narrowest in the North East, where actual earnings of £20,149 compared to required wages of £23,616. However, this still leaves a prospective first-time buyer 17 per cent short of where they need to be.

The KPMG report was based on individual first-time buyers. It highlights how many new homeowners must wait to buy with a partner to afford a home and take advantage of an extra person’s wages extending borrowing ability.

Those hoping to buy would also need to raise a deposit first, which is a tall order for many with house prices high. A first-time buyer in London would need to save £38,500 to secure their 10 per cent deposit in the example above, more than a year’s pre-tax earnings. Meanwhile, a first-time buyer across the UK would need to save £20,000 – almost a year’s pre-tax earnings.

With interest rates low and wages stagnant, such a saving goal seems unattainable for many, with the Bank of Mum and Dad, or Gran and Grandad, stepping in to fill some of the gap.