As first-time buyers are having an increasingly difficult time getting themselves on the first rung of the housing ladder, new research shows that many are opting to buy with friends.

Continually increasing prices, competition from buy-to-let landlords and affordability pressures such as higher interest rates and rising fuel prices have put prospective buyers in a very difficult position when it comes to making that all-important first purchase.

But now many are opting for group mortgages and HSBC believes this to be a growing trend.

Milan Khatri, RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) commenting on the latest figures from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), said: “House price rises for first-time buyer properties fell back in July [from 6.9 per cent in June], but at 5.6 per cent is still running above average wage rises, increasing difficulties for would-be buyers to get on to the housing ladder.”

In response to these pressures, first-time buyers have fought back by capitalising on group mortgages.

In a survey by HSBC, 57 per cent of potential first-time buyers said that they would buy a property with friends, with 93 per cent claiming that affordability is a problem.

Legally, up to four people can jointly own a property in England and Wales, and most people who co-own opt to become tenants in common meaning that each party holds separate shares in the purchase depending on how much capital each party puts into the deal.

Carina Kemp, head of mortgages at HSBC, says that first-time buyers have been forced into “thinking more laterally about how to get on the ladder” because, at present, “the average house price in England and Wales stands at almost £200,000, which is over six times the average salary”.

She continued: “More and more people are getting round high property prices by clubbing together with friends or family to buy a home and this is a trend which we expect to continue.”

Despite the pressures, first-time buyers are determined to get on the housing ladder with 27 per cent wishing to stop wasting money on rent and a fifth wanting the independence that home ownership brings.

As the property market remains strong, as shown by the one per cent rise in house prices last month, many of these prospective buyers see purchasing a home as a sound investment for the future, meaning that striking up a deal is seen as more important than just finding a secure place to live.