HBOS: House prices 'most affordable' for 5 years

Houses in the UK are now at their most affordable for over five years, HBOS has claimed.

The number of regions where property has become more accessible to people stepping onto the housing ladder for the first time has also trebled, reports Bloomberg.

Martin Ellis, chief economist at the bank, commented: "There has been a marked improvement in housing affordability in many parts of the UK.

"First-time buyers, in particular, are benefiting."

Despite the boost for first-time buyers, HBOS said homes in London, Wales, Northern Ireland and the West Midlands remain unaffordable.

Meanwhile, Eric Conway, economics editor at the Daily Telegraph, has claimed further falls in property falls in 2009 will be coupled with less mortgage-lending.

He writes: "If the Government can successfully increase mortgage availability ... it could mean a return to a rather more healthy – if not booming – housing market by 2010."