First-time-buyers (FTBs) are creating ever more creative ways of getting on the first rung of the housing ladder, according to a Reuters report.

An increasing number of FTBs are turning to their parents for financial assistance, buying just a share in their future home or buying with friends to help reduce costs.

Mortgage providers are also responding to the FTB market, by providing increasingly innovative mortgage products which abandon traditional practises.

The Nationwide building society, for instance, now offers a mortgage which allows four individuals to buy together.

"More and more people are coming to us with complex proposals as to how they might be able to get a mortgage," said Joe Rabbitt of Nationwide.

"People are finding it harder to take the first steps in the property ladder. As house prices increase, we're finding that so does the average age of the first-time buyer - we're finding more groups are coming to us having to buy with friends, or that buyers are using their parents as guarantors."

Many are also looking into shared ownership with a housing association, with many set aside for public sector workers.


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