People aspiring to get on the property ladder across England and Wales could find themselves needing more than £23,000 for a deposit and moving costs, according to Office for National Statistics (ONS) data.
The ONS has placed a new affordability calculator on its website, which allows would-be home-buyers to see what level of household income they might expect to need to get a mortgage on an "entry-level" property in their neighbourhood.
The ONS said that with the average cost of an entry-level home in England and Wales being £140,000, prospective buyers could require £300 stamp duty, an estimated £2,000 for legal and moving costs and £21,000 for a 15% deposit, coming to £23,300 in total.
It said a typical household in England and Wales could need an annual household income of £26,444 to be able to borrow enough for an entry-level property, while new buyers in London could require an income of nearly £60,000 and savings of £55,000.
The calculator uses some assumptions about the size of the deposit and the multiples of income that can be borrowed. People using the calculator can adjust these to bring them closer to their own circumstances.
Further information about the new calculator can be found on the ONS's website at http://visual.ons.gov.uk/prospective-homeowners-struggling-to-get-onto-the-property-ladder/