house prices have gone through the roof making it impossible for many would-be buyers to get a foot on the first rung of the home-owing ladder.

Gayle McBain reports how Bolton has been affected

THERE has been a massive slump in the number of first-time buyers.

First-time home-owners have reached an all-time low and although the war in Iraq is thought to have held some people back, for most it is the spiralling cost of buying a house that has simply priced them out of the market.

In Bolton, as in most parts of the country, house prices have seen a sudden and dramatic rise, leaving many young couples unable to afford to buy a house.

According to figures, released by the Council of Mortgage Lenders, first time buyers accounted for just 29 per cent of the total number of home loans in February this year - well below the long-term average of 45 per cent.

Local estate agencies in and around Bolton believe the drop in first-time buying is as a result of the huge, very sudden, increase in house prices.

Director of Regency Estates in Horwich, Simon Glover, said: "The problem is that many first-time buyers simply cannot afford to buy a home. We are looking, in Horwich, at around £60,000 for a terraced house.

"A lot of people want to stay in the Horwich area to be near family and the prices have risen dramatically here with the building of the Reebok Stadium and Middlebrook.

"Some people are going in to rented accommodation and waiting to see if the housing market does drop."

Amazingly a young couple will have little, if any, change from £50,000 if they want to buy a two-bedroomed terraced house in Astley Bridge in the current market.

A spokesman for Mellor Biggs estate agency in Astley Bridge, said: "We have had a lot of first-time buyers looking for properties around £40,000 but you have to pay more than that for a two-bedroomed terraced house in the area. You would be looking at around £50,000."

She said that the main problem facing young first-time buyers was the spiralling cost of properties, even at the lower end of the market.

Buying that first dream house can be a costly business, according to new research.

First-time buyers can spend as much as £10,000 during the first 12 months of owning their new home, on top of the costs associated with buying it.

The research has revealed that first-time buyers spend an average of £5,250 redecorating and furnishing.

Once deposits, solicitors' fees and stamp duty are taken into account those buying their first home last year spent, collectively, a total of £2.8 billion buying and improving their properties, reveals the Yorkshire Bank. Around two thirds of people currently looking to take their first step on to the property ladder said they thought they would end up buying a house that needed quite a lot of doing to it.

But 43 per cent of those who had bought a house said they could not afford to do any renovations as they had used up all their money in buying the property. The head of Yorkshire Bank, Geoff Greer, said: "Things are really difficult for first-time buyers in the current market conditions.

"They're expected to save up a healthy deposit, while still keeping a pot for solicitor's fees, stamp duty and doing up their new home.

"At the same time they're supposed to be paying off their student debts and saving for their retirement."

ONE couple gambling on a drop in prices is Kevin Tracey and his partner Andrea Moss, both 20, who are paying £475 a month in rent for their flat in Mulberry Court, Horwich.

They have an eight-month-old son, Andrew, and hope to buy a house with a garden for Andrew to play in and, as Kevin said, to hold "barbecues in the summer".

He hopes his dream house will soon become a reality, but Kevin is reliant on the housing market and is waiting for a drop in house prices. Although he could just about afford to buy in the current market it would not be the ideal home for the family and he hopes, eventually, to get what they want at a price they can afford.

Kevin, a shipping clerk in Manchester and Andrea, a care assistant at a nursing home, want to stay in Horwich to be near Andrea's work and close to family. Both Kevin and Andrea were brought up in Horwich and went to school in the town. They met three years ago and set up home two years ago. "Houses are very expensive in Horwich. We want to get a mortgage so we are not paying out dead money as we are with our rented flat. We don't want to rent forever.

"We are going to give it six months and then make a decision, but we cannot get very much for our money at the moment. We hope that will change. We are not setting our sights too high but you don't get very much for £50,000 in Horwich these days."